The Galaxy Stone
by MaxiCavLover
Summary: When Steven comes across a strange new stone his world is thrown into chaos. Team Galactic will stop at nothing to get their hands on this stone, forcing Steven to send his 1 year old daughter into hiding. After confronting Team Galactic at the headquarters, Steven goes missing presumed dead. His daughter brings it upon herself to find him once she learns the truth of her heritage.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: The Summoning Stone

15 years ago

Steven glanced behind his shoulder, certain that he was being followed. Ever since he had found the strange, black stone with colours that swirled like the galaxy in its center, he had felt a nearby presence wherever he went. He had researched the stone to no avail, before declaring it a newly discovered stone, and naming it the Galaxy Stone. A befitting name, based on its looks. He had not yet figured out what its purpose was, but he was determined to find out.

He was currently holed away in Mt. Shady, trying to find anything that would help him figure out what the stone was, and its capabilities.

The sound of small rocks moving made him glance over his shoulder once again, and goose-bumps show up on his arms and neck.

"Who's there?" He called out.

The sound of scraping feet followed, and three men and a woman stood in front of him, all clad in the Team Galactic Uniform, though various forms of the original version. They must have been more than just grunts.

"My name is Lord. Salazar," The middle man said, before gesturing to his companions "And these are my followers, Mercury, Venus and Pluto,"

"I know who you are," Steven told him, standing up to his full height. "What do you want?"

"Now, now, we both know that you know exactly what I am here for," Lord. Salazar told him. "Hand over the rock, and no one will get hurt,"

"Over my dead body," Steven told him "Help me out Metagross,"

"If a battle is what you want, a battle is what you shall have," Lord. Salazar replied with a grin. "Toxicroak, Arcanine, you're up!"

His companions also sent out their pokemon, and the battle was on.

xOxOx

Steven signed on the dotted line, opening a new account and transferring all of his belongings into it.

"And you are certain this is untraceable?" He asked yet again.

"Of course sir, no one will ever find out who this account belongs to. As far as they are concerned, it belongs to an old elderly woman who wished to live her final years of life on a secluded beach," The bank manager informed him.

"And you will make sure my daughter gets away from here?" He insisted, his eyes searching frantically into the bank managers.

"Of course, my wife is doing the job herself. She knows a lovely couple back in Hoenn, who run an orphanage. Your daughter will be sent there and cared for properly. She will only find out her true identity on her sixteenth birthday, when she receives her starter pokemon, and her inheritance," The bank manager told him. "And as soon as the girl arrives, they will be closing down their current orphanage, and reopening in another town, without any trace of the old location,"

"Good, good," Steven sighed "I just can't believe it has come to this. But it is too dangerous for her to be with me, and far too dangerous for me to leave her at home, with our employees,"

"I understand, sir. These are grave times. Your daughter must be protected, and as her mother is… no longer with us… it makes sense to take her to a loving couple far away from all of this nonsense,"

"I agree, I just can't help but thinking this will be the last time I will ever see her again," Steven said truthfully, running a hand over his face.

"Now, Mr. Stone, don't talk such nonsense. You are the strongest person I know," The bank manager insisted "If anyone can defeat a bunch of unruly thugs, it is you,"

Steven looked up, a look of determination on his face "I just hope you're right.

A knock on the door rang through the office, and a small, petite old lady entered the room, carrying a tiny baby girl in her arms.

"It is time Steven, we must leave now if we are to catch the next ship," The woman told him.

He nodded, reaching out towards his baby. "You may not understand this now, but in fifteen years you will. You may hate me for abandoning you, but this is the only way I can protect you. I never knew before, what finding that stone would do to our futures, to your mother… And I cannot reverse the clock," He untied a thin black ribbon from his neck, a strange dark stone attached in the middle. "This is all I have left to leave you,"

"Mr. Stone," The woman said urgently.

"Hush Helga, give the man a bit of peace. He is saying goodbye to his baby," The bank manager told her.

"Here," Steven said, handing Helga a letter, scrawled with the name _Azure_. "Please make sure she gets this on her sixteenth birthday,"

"Of course, dear," Helga replied, grabbing the letter and the baby back off of him. "You will see her soon. Once this is all over, I will take you to her,"

Steven nodded, but his gut feeling kept telling him he would never see her again.

"Goodbye for now," Helga said, giving a small wave and exiting the room.

"You should also be leaving, Steven. It is a long way to Veilstone City," The bank manager told him.

Steven nodded, grabbing his bag and making his way out.

That was the last time the bank manager saw him. Rumors emerged that Steven Stone was taken prisoner by Team Galactic, while others insisted that they killed him.

The bank manager could only hope it was the former.


	2. Chapter 2 - Found Out

DISCLAIMER: I do not own pokemon. The only things I do own, are my ideas for this story and my character Azure. Thanks!

Chapter 2: Found Out

Present Day

POV: Azure

I had always wondered what it would be like to enter into a contest. I had thought about all the different pokemon I could catch, and what sort of moves would go well together, after watching other people compete on TV. I would now finally get the opportunity to choose my starter pokemon, and go on my own journey to become the best coordinator in the world. I had already packed up my room, most of my meager belongings would go into storage at the lab until I came back from my journey. My room was now ready for a new orphan. I didn't have a lot, and the orphanage no longer took responsibility for the belongings of those who had come of age. The orphanage used to be owned by a lovely elderly couple, who would keep all of your belongings until you came back, but they had both passed away. The orphanage was now owned by a group of four sisters, who cared more about the money they received from the government for 'taking care' of over thirty girls then the girls themselves.

"Az, are you leaving now?" A small voice asked from the doorway.

I turned to see a small girl.

"Hello Grace," I said back "I am, and I hear you're moving up to a big girl room to make way for a new baby,"

She nodded eagerly "But… I don't have anything for my room," She said sadly "It's going to be so white. I hate white,"

I reached over to my box marked 'room decorations,' and handed it to her.

"I don't have much," I told her "But it's all yours," The only box I really needed was my personal items, a picture of my parents and an old stuffed teddy bear.

"Are you sure?" Grace asked me.

"Of course. Now I really better get going," I told her "I will write to you as much as I can. Just be good, and the sisters won't even notice you,"

Grace had a knack for getting into mischief. Her tiny body was already marked with scars and a few bruises. My own body was a mirror, for when I stood up for Grace and took her punishment. The sisters didn't take mischievous children very well. Especially the eldest sister, who carried around a whip for 'keeping us all in line'.

Grace shrugged "I'll try,"

I hated leaving her there, but there was not a lot I could do. The legal age for journeying with pokemon was 16, and she was a lot younger than that.

Before I left the orphanage, carrying my one box marked 'personal' I scooped her up for a hug.

"Be good," I told her again.

xOxOx

The lab was fairly close to the orphanage, a ten minute walk.

The moment I arrived, I knew something was wrong. The front door was wide open, and everything was broken or damaged. The shelves were toppling over, their contests scattered over the floor. I stepped into something wet, and noticed that every potion, and all other medical supplies were leaking out of their broken bottles and onto the floor. I left my box next to the front door, and headed inside,

"Professor?" I called.

A muffled sound replied.

I took a few steps towards the next room, opening the door slowly.

"Professor?" I called again.

I cautiously stepped into the room, noticing the Professor strapped to a chair with rope, a gag in his mouth.

"Well, well, well, I have been expecting you," A voice said from behind me. I turned to see a man in the doorway, his dark green hair pulled back into a pony tail. "Azure Stone,"

"How do you know my name?" I asked, my voice quivering.

"I know a lot about you. It took a while for us to find you, but as soon as the sisters took control of the orphanage, they informed us right away," He told me "I thought the orphanage was a good way to obtain new recruitments. I didn't realize it was the safe-haven of the girl I had been searching for all of these years. You look a lot like your father. Same hair, same eyes,"

"My father?" I repeated.

"Of course, Steven Stone," The man continued "Quite an astounding man. Collector of rare stones, heir to the Devon Corporation. He sold that of course, left everything to you,"

I had an inheritance?

"I believe this is yours," The man told me, handing me a piece of paper.

I unfolded it carefully, reading every word slowly.

_My dearest Azure,_

_There is so much I wish I could tell you, but I am pressed for time._

_The day you came into the world was the happiest of my life. Your mother, Mira, and I were overjoyed._

_She spent her days looking after you, so that I could continue my dream of finding rare stones._

_I did not expect to find something as precious as I did though._

_The stone around your neck is named The Galaxy Stone, but there are other names for it._

_Team Galactic call it The Summoning Stone, and have reason to believe it can summon Arceus, the creator of the universe. They wish to use this stone to alter the world, and create a new world with no pokemon. In this world their leader, Lord. Salazar, rules over everyone._

_We cannot let this happen. _

_Team Galactic do not know where you are, so you and the stone are safe. I have left you all of my possessions, but please use caution when accessing them. I have gone through immense measures to ensure your name is not linked to any of them._

_I sincerely hope that all went to plan, and I do not need to give you this letter, but if it does not, know that I did everything in my power to keep you safe. Know that I love you with all of my heart, and I am terribly sorry I have left you with this great burden. Keep the stone safe, it must not fall into the wrong hands._

_Love always,_

_Your father, Steven Stone_

I read the letter a few more times, trying to get my head around the words. The necklace I had worn all of these years was called a Galaxy Stone? I had heard of Team Galactic, but hadn't they been disbanded years ago, when their leader Cyrus had perished into an unknown world?

"Who are you?" I asked the man in the doorway.

"Everyone calls me Neptune," He replied with a grin. "Now enough of this chit-chat. Hand me the stone,"

"Never," I replied. My father had died protecting it, there was obviously a reason for that.

"I was hoping you would say that," He grinned. "Come on out everyone. It's time to fight,"

Five people stepped out of the shadows. They all had the same bowl-shaped light blue hairdo, and the same Galactic Uniform. They threw their poke balls simultaneously, and five Golbat and five Mightyena stood in front of me.

"Crap, crap, crap," I whispered.

I turned on my heel and fled. I wasn't sure what I was doing, I could never outrun a group of Mightyena, let alone Golbat who could see my every move from the skies. I felt teeth nipping my ankles, and cried out in pain.

How was I going to get myself out of this?

A bright, shiny orb of light flew through the trees, smashing into the Mightyena.

They howled in pain, turning their attention to a small, blue dog-like pokemon.

"Run," A voice said in my head.

I didn't need to be told twice. I started to run again, making my way into the forest.

"Golbat," A voice said from above. I looked up to see that the Golbat were still following me.

How was I going to get away from them?

In the end, I didn't have to worry. A powerful electric attack came from the bushes in front of me, hitting the Golbat head-on.

A man who looked to be in his forties stepped into the clearing, an Electivire close behind. His dark blue hair was streaked with grey, and his brown eyes looked much older than his age.

"Once more Electivire," He commanded.

The Golbat came crashing to the ground, fainted.

"Are you all right?" The man asked me.

I nodded slowly. Who was this guy?

"My team are at the lab," He told me "We must go back there at once,"

"Was the Riolu yours as well?" I asked him.

"The what?" He replied.

"The Riolu," I repeated "It took care of the Mightyena,"

"I don't know anything about these Mightyena, or a Riolu," The man told me.

"Oh," I replied, slightly disappointed.

"My name is Roderick Grey," The man told me "I am the head of The Illuminators, a team dedicated to the eradication of Team Galactic. We have been watching you since the day your father gave you that stone. And it seems like we came here in the nick of time!"

"The nick of time? How about the last _two years_ since the sisters took control of the orphanage?" I countered "They're members of Team Galactic!"

"I doubt that," He replied "We looked into them. They're clean. Anyways, let's head back to the lab,"

I followed him back to the lab, thinking about how much of an idiot he could be.

There were two more men, as well as a women, waiting in the lab with the professor, who had been released from his bindings.

"Hello Azure, nice to meet you," The professor told me "I am sorry about all of that,"

"That wasn't your fault," I replied "But it would be nice to know what's going on,"

"Well, as you now probably know, that was Team Galactic. It was believed that they were disbanded many years ago, but in truth they continued their operations in a secure location under the rule of a man who calls himself Lord. Salazar. They have been after that stone for many years, even longer than when you father first found it, fifteen years ago,"

"My father said in his letter that this stone could summon Arceus, is that true?" I asked.

"It is," The professor replied "But it also grants the holder power over Arceus. Which means, if in the wrong hands, the world as we know it can be changed to however the holder sees fit,"

"And Team Galactic want to make a world with no pokemon," I said with a shudder.

"Exactly. Which is why you must hand the stone over to Mr. Grey," The professor told me with a nod.

"No ways," I replied, clutching the stone in my hands "My father left it to me, and I will not be giving the stone to anyone,"

"Miss. Stone, you are in no position to look after such an important artifact," Mr. Grey insisted.

A nagging sense in the back of my mind told me not to trust this man.

"Please professor, if I can just receive my starter pokemon, I'll be on my way," I pleaded.

"Oh, I almost forgot," The professor said, his voice slightly hysterical "In all of this madness, Team Galactic took the starter pokemon. I have no pokemon here for you,"

I felt myself start to panic. "But, sir, how will I go on my journey?"

"We will have more starter pokemon in a few weeks," The professor replied "And you are more than welcome to stay here in the meantime,"

I didn't think that would be a good idea. Team Galactic knew where I was, and they were after the stone.

"Oh, I have something else for you," The professor continued. "These were left in the possession of the previous orphanage owners. Your father left them for you,"

I grabbed the package from the professor, revealing a large wad of cash, a bank card, a bank statement explaining that a very, very large sum of money had been transferred to a bank account in my name, as well as papers claiming that I now was the owner of a large estate in the Hoenn region. I had gone from being a very poor orphan, to a millionaire, in the space of a few moments.

"This is mine?" I asked.

"All of it," The professor replied. "But you may not wish to use any of it yet, until we get everything sorted out with Team Galactic. They are able to trace your bank card whenever you use it,"

"Oh," I said "My father did leave me some cash though,"

"You can always come back to the Illuminators headquarters with me," Mr. Grey told me "It is a fair distance though. It is in Sinnoh,"

"Oh, no thank you," I replied "Though, I would like to go shopping. I don't have much, and I'll probably need a few things for my journey,"

"This is not the time for shopping, anything you could possibly need is at the Illuminators headquarters," Mr. Grey said, his voice rising.

"I think shopping would be a great idea," The professor interrupted "While you go out, I'll call the other professors and see if I can have a starter transferred,"

"Thanks professor, I won't be long," I told him, shoving my new belongings into my bag, and heading out the door.

The city center wasn't far from the lab, and in the opposite direction of the orphanage. I managed to get there without any more incidents, and entered the first shop I saw for trainers clothing.

A lady came out from behind the desk "Can I help you?" She asked, giving me a look that clearly said I didn't belong here.

"I need a trainer's uniform, and a coordinators dress," I replied.

"Well, we do have a few discounted items over there," She replied, pointing to a corner of the shop.

"Money's not a problem," I replied "I just need something that looks nice, and will last a while,"

"Well, have a look around, everything is colour coordinated. Just please don't try on anything you can't afford," She said, returning to the counter.

I ended up getting a black pleated skirt, paired with a white top and grey vest that had pale blue bows on both pockets. And a grey headband for my hair, with a black bow on it. Light blue sneakers completed the look. I grabbed three lots of each item of clothing, knowing I would definitely need more than one set between pokemon centers. For my coordinators outfit I chose a knee length white dress with white ruffled sleeves and a blue sash around the upper waist that ended in a bow at the back. The bottom of the dress &amp; the sleeves were edged in blue lace. The headband I would use for my every day outfit would complete the look perfectly.

Before heading to the front counter, I grabbed a black satchel bag from the accessories section that contained heaps of pockets and plenty of room. A sleeping bag was already attached to the side of it.

"So how do you expect to pay for this?" The girl at the counter asked.

I pulled the bank card out of my bag, thinking it didn't really matter if I used it. Team Galactic already knew where I was. I entered the pin number, and changed back into the trainer's outfit, before leaving with my purchases.

Before returning to the lab, I grabbed a few different types of pokemon medicine, poke balls, some human food, as well as pokemon food, a small pot I could use to cook food in and boil water, and some drawing materials for if I ever got bored or inspired during my journey. I also took out a large amount of cash from the ATM. It would definitely come in handy for my journey, especially if I couldn't use the bank card.

xOxOx

"Did you have any luck?" I asked the professor when I returned to the lab.

"Unfortunately none of my colleagues have starter pokemon they can spare at the moment," He replied.

"Then it is settled, you will head to Sinnoh with me!" Mr. Grey said.

I felt really uneasy about him insisting I return with him to the Illuminators headquarters and hand over the Galaxy Stone.

"Can't I just stay here?" I asked.

"As much as I would love the company, I am just not equipped to look after you," The professor replied "If Team Galactic came back, they would take you and the stone with them,"

I sighed. I couldn't see any way out of this yet. Unless I could escape. "Can we at least stay here the night?" I asked.

"Of course," Mr. Grey said with a huge grin.

"There is a guest room at the end of the corridor, you are more than welcome to use it," The professor told me.

I excused myself and headed straight for the room. When I opened the door I sighed with relief. There was a large window that exited into the forest. It was already open, letting a gentle breeze into the room. I decided to stay for a while longer, I would have a much better chance escaping at night time.

I lay down on the bed and closed my eyes. I was exhausted from the day's events, and a nap couldn't hurt.

xOxOx

I woke to the sound of my name being called.

"Azure… Azure,"

I looked around my room, but everything was pitch black.

"It's time to go," The voice continued.

I felt a slight pain in my head as the voice continued "Through the window,"

I grabbed my bag and headed over to the window.

The Riolu from earlier was standing outside of my door.

"Everyone is sleeping," It told me "So we need to leave now,"

I pulled myself onto the windowsill, and jumped out into the forest. "Where are we going?" I asked the Riolu.

"That is up to you," It replied.

"Do you have a name?" I asked it.

"Lucy," She replied.

"I think we should go the last place they will expect us to. We have to go to Sinnoh," I told her.

"Then we are heading in the wrong direction. We must go to Rustboro, and onto the ship," Lucy told me.

I nodded "How long will that take?"

"I have a friend who can get us there instantly," She informed me. "She is just a few meters ahead,"

We entered into another clearing to find a large Pidgeot.

Riolu talked to the Pidgeot in words I couldn't understand then told me to climb on.

"It might be easier for Pidgeot if you put me in a poke ball first," She added.

"Oh, are you sure?" I asked her.

"Definitely," She replied.

I pulled a poke ball out of my bag, and threw it at her. It didn't even flash red, she was captured instantly. I climbed onto the Pidgeot's back, holding on for life. "Please don't do anything crazy," I asked her.

She made a sound that sounded a lot like laughing and took off into the air.

xOxOx

It didn't take long for us to reach Rustboro City, but I had to wait until the following morning before I could purchase a ticket to Sinnoh, using the cash my father had left me. The ship left early in the morning, and would take about a week to get to Sinnoh. I knew I wouldn't be able to relax until we reached our destination. I clutched the Galaxy Stone to my chest, wishing my father had left it with someone else. I couldn't help but wonder what would happen if I failed and the stone ended up in the wrong hands.


	3. Chapter 3 - Decisions

Chapter 3: Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

POV: Azure

After a week at sea, we had almost reached our destination. The only time Lucy came out of her poke ball was at night, when we were alone in our room. I had just given her a large bowl of poke-food when she said "There is something I should tell you,"

"Oh, what is it?" I asked.

"I am sure you have wondered how I came to find you, and why I fought off the Mightyena to save you," She started, looking quite nervous "Well, my grandmother was your father's pokemon. He released her into the wild when he knew there was no way he could beat Team Galactic. He thought that being captured by horrible people, and left in a tiny cave, was not right, so he released all of his pokemon and told them not to worry about him. My grandmother passed the story on to my mother, who passed it on to me. And I knew I had to find you, to protect you and the stone,"

"Wow, your grandmother was my father's pokemon? Do you know what other pokemon he had?" I asked, feeling curious about the father I had never known.

She shrugged "Mostly steel types. They were his favorite,"

"Do you know where my father is? If he is still alive," I asked Riolu.

"My grandmother followed Team Galactic back to their headquarters and watched from a distance," Riolu replied "The last she knew, they had transferred him to an Island based hide out. After that, she lost contact with him, but he was alive. That was about 5 years ago,"

My mind roiled with this information. My father could still be alive. And if he was, I had to find him. I had to set him free.

"I don't think that going to the headquarters of the evil people who are looking for you is the best idea," Lucy told me "Especially when the only pokemon you have is me,"

"Then what should we do?" I asked her.

"Well, what did you want to do before you find out any of this stuff about your dad?" She asked.

"I wanted to be a coordinator," I told her.

"Then you become a coordinator. Catch more pokemon. Train them to be really strong. And when the time is right, we will rescue your father," She told me.

"It all seems so different now," I told her sadly.

"We can't just go storming off," Lucy replied "We need time to train, and to make a plan,"

I nodded, she was right. "Then I guess our first stop should be registering for the contests,"

xOxOx

We arrived at Sandgem Town early in the morning. I departed from the ship and headed straight for the Pokémon center, making sure Riolu was in tip-top shape after a week at sea. I wobbled on unsteady feet, not yet used to being on dry land.

"Wow, you came from Hoenn?" Nurse Joy said "That must have been a long journey,"

"It took a week," I replied, fastening Riolu's pokeball to my belt.

She nodded in agreement "Well I hope you visit again sometime,"

Before leaving I grabbed a Pokémon Contest brochure from her desk, reading that the closest Contest location was the next city over, Jubilife City.

"Well I guess that's where we will go," I mumbled to myself, releasing Riolu from her pokeball.

"Sounds great," She told me when I informed her of where we were going "Maybe we will find another Pokémon on the way,"

"I only need one Pokémon to enter," I told her "But I guess I should have more than 1,"

"You will need as many as possible to defeat Team Galactic, it is a pity you can only carry 6 with you," She agreed.

We walked through the forest at a swift pace. Even though we had quite a burden on our shoulders, keeping the stone safe, excitement bubbled in my chest at the thought of finally becoming a coordinator. I wanted to register as quickly as possible.

Riolu walked next to me, and seemed to be concentrating hard.

"What are you doing?" I asked her.

She held out her hand, stopping me. "There is a group of people coming from behind us, and I can't tell if they are friend or foe. We should hide in the bushes,"

We hurried into the bushes, and peered out onto the road.

A group of kids about my age were walking towards Jubilife City.

A girl with long pale pink hair was talking animatedly.

"Well, what should we do? Should we join the gyms or contests? Or should we do neither and focus on strengthening our teams?" She asked her friends. Her eyes were big, and bright blue, and her face was heart shaped. She was tall and slender with a figure that made me feel like a five year old compared to her.

We walked alongside the bushes, keeping up with the group as they walked.

"Well, I was thinking of joining the contests. I've already done gyms, and my Pokémon are quite tough, so I think I should focus on their skills. And everyone knows coordinators come up with some pretty extraordinary moves," One of the guys replied. He had messy black hair, and dark brown eyes.

"Are you sure it's not for the girls?" The pink haired girl continued, glaring at him and stabbing a finger at his chest.

"I think Quinn is right," One of the other guys said. This one had dark purple hair, and dark eyes that appeared to be black. "Our Pokémon are quite skilled at gym battling, but it would do them well to learn other ways of battling. We need to have one-up on our enemy,"

"What about the mission?" Another guy asked. This one had pale brown hair and green eyes.

"We can do both at the same time. We don't even know if the mission will come into play, anyways. We all know that he stuffed things up. We have no idea where the mission will take place, if at all," Purple haired guy continued.

"We shouldn't be discussing this in the open," The last member of their team, a short girl with brown hair styled in a pixie cut spoke up. "You never know who is listening, and we haven't made sure the area is secure,"

Purple haired guy looked around. He didn't appear to be anxious, more pissed off than anything. "As far as we know, they don't occupy this land yet. But I guess you can never be too careful,"

I turned towards Riolu "Are they part of Team Galactic?" I whispered.

She shrugged "I can't get a proper reading on them," She told me. "Something seems to be blocking me,"

"Maybe we should fall back and stay in the woods for a few nights? I have a tent, and a sleeping bag, and we have enough food to last us about a week if we ration properly," I asked her.

She shook her head "The contest is in a week's time, we can't afford to stay here for that long, or longer since they will be in the contest too. Maybe we should stay for one night, or until we catch another member for our team, and then enter into the contest? We can always come back to train here before the contest,"

I nodded in agreement. If I wanted to rescue my father as quickly as possible, I had to start training immediately, and that meant being in this contest. I just hoped I could catch a strong enough team to help defeat Team Galactic.

xOxOx

It didn't take long to set up our camp. The tent I had bought was a pop up tent, the only thing I needed to do was secure it to the ground with the pegs. I rolled out the sleeping bag inside and then set up the campfire, laying out a circle of rocks, with logs and twigs in the middle. I placed my pot on top and poured some water inside. Once it was boiling I added a pasta/soup mix to the water, continuously stirring.

Lucy wrinkled her nose "That doesn't smell too good," She told me.

"It was all the shop had when I bought them, or at least all they had for vegetarians," I replied.

"You don't eat meat?" She asked in surprise.

"No, I never really liked the taste of it, and I never wanted to eat that sort of stuff," I replied with a shrug, stirring the yellow mess in the pot. It was supposed to be a macaroni-cheese-vegetable soup sort of meal, with your daily intake of vegetables.

I wondered what the other kids at the orphanage would be eating, especially Grace. A lot of the time we were given tiny amounts of lumpy grey food, which had no flavor.

I laid out some Pokémon food for Lucy and started to eat my meal.

I had my spoon to my mouth when Lucy announced "We have company,"

I turned around to see about ten pairs of eyes in the bushes. One by one, a group of Shinx stepped into our clearing, slowly making their way towards Riolu's food.

Lucy sent a warning aura sphere towards them, making almost all of them scatter. One tiny Shinx remained, its eyes wide with fear. I noticed that its body was covered in tiny cuts and bruises.

"It's hurt," I told Lucy.

"Shi," It muttered miserably.

"The other Shinx stole her food, and she tried to fight them off, but there were too many of them for her," Lucy replied.

I grabbed my bag, pouring a pile of Pokémon food onto the ground for her.

"Come on over, we won't hurt you," I told her.

She took a few hesitant steps towards us before stopping, her eyes glued to Riolu.

"I won't hurt you," Lucy promised.

She nodded, and lunged for the food. I had never seen anything move so fast, one minute she was five meters away, and the next she was shoveling food into her mouth.

"Wow, she is fast," I said out loud.

Lucy nodded in agreement.

"How would you like to join us?" I asked Shinx, offering her one of my pokeballs. "You will never have to worry about those bullies ever again, and you will always have plenty of food,"

"Though I should warn you we are on a dangerous mission," Lucy added "We are planning to take down an evil organization known as Team Galactic,"

Shinx's eyes darkened "Shi, Shinx," She told Riolu.

"She says her family were killed by Team Galactic," Lucy told me. "And she would love to help take them down,"

Shinx placed her paw onto the pokeball. She glowed red before being sucked inside.

I released her straight away, and she gave me a grateful smile.

"I guess we will be registering for the contest tomorrow," I told Lucy.

She nodded "Yes, we will. Though I was thinking, maybe it would be wise for you to wear a wig? Your hair colour, and even your eye colour, are very unique. Maybe something plain, like brown?"

"That's probably a good idea," I replied, wondering why I hadn't thought of that before.

We finished our meals, and I sprayed Shinx with some potions, before we headed off to bed. Lucy told me that even when she was asleep, her aura powers would alert her to any sort of danger.

Shinx curled up next to me, her body acting as a tiny heater against the cold night air.

"I think I will call you Lexi," I told her.

"Shi!" She said happily.

I fell asleep quite quickly, listening to the gentle snores of my new Pokémon. Tomorrow we would start training to defeat Team Galactic. Tomorrow would be the real start to my journey.

xOxOx

The next morning I woke up early, and packed up our small camp. Shinx was looking much better than she had the night before, with most of her cuts already starting to disappear.

It took us an hour to reach Jubilife, and half an hour to find a shop that sold wigs. I bought a plain brown coloured wig with long, straight hair and a side fringe, and another one which was almost identical except for being curly.

I placed the straight one on my head before heading for the contest hall. I was relieved to find that the group of kids I had seen the day before weren't there. I registered for the contest, supplying a false name and address. The contest worker took my picture, before handing me my contest pass.

"All done, Annie," She said with a brilliant smile "You have now been entered into the Jubilife Contest. It starts in 6 days' time, so be sure to practice really hard,"

"I will," I replied, trying to give her an equally brilliant smile, though it seemed more like a grimace. I had used two names for girls who had already left the orphanage and put them together to make my new name Annie Winchester. As long as I remembered my new name, I had nothing to worry about.

I headed back into the forest, releasing both of my Pokémon from their pokeballs.

"I don't know which of you I should use," I told them truthfully.

"Use Lexi," Lucy told me "I don't mind waiting for the next one,"

"If you're sure," I replied.

I aimed my poketch at Lexi. It showed that her attacks were Tackle, Charge, Swift, Spark and Signal Beam.

"Signal Beam?" I said out loud "How do you know a bug type attack?"

She shrugged happily.

A plan came into my head for a set of moves that could possibly work together.

"I think I know what we can do. But it will probably take a while to learn, so we had better get started," I told my Pokémon.

"Shi!" Shinx agreed.

"We can do this!" Lucy smiled happily.


	4. Chapter 4 - The First Contest

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Chapter 4: The First Contest

POV: Azure

I stood in the far corner of the waiting room, nervously wringing my hands together.

The contest had started an hour earlier, and there were very few people left in the room, including the group of kids I had seen the week before. The large amount of people who had entered had been an unexpected surprise. I had worn the curly haired wig, and I hoped that with my head bowed I would be less noticeable.

"Quinton Ketchum, please make your way to the main stage," A voice said over the P.A.

"Get ready to be wowed," The black haired guy said to his friends.

"Yeah right," The pink haired girl muttered.

"You're just jealous Madi," He snickered, while sauntering off. Madi huffed in distaste.

Moments later his picture appeared on the T.V. screen. He released his Pokémon, which ended up being a Wartortle.

He called out a series of moves to his Pokémon; a bubble attack aimed towards the sun, making the bubbles glow as they burst, a beautiful whirlpool attack, and finished off his sequence with asking his Squirtle to retreat into its shell and use rapid spin into the middle of the whirlpool attack, showering the crowd in drops of shiny water. The crowd cheered as he received his score, 25.8.

He seemed to be a bit disappointed in that, but bowed to the crowd and headed off the stage and back into the second waiting room, where those who had already performed were being kept until the second rounds began.

"What a refreshing performance!" The announcer called "And next up we have none other than Madison Takeshi, another rookie contestant! Please make your way to the main stage,"

Madison looked momentarily nervous before composing herself. "It's show time!" She said with determination. She hurried out of the room, reappearing on the T.V.

She threw her pokeball into the air, releasing a Teddiursa.

Teddiursa looked out at the crowd, resting one of its paws against its mouth, with its head cocked slightly to one side. Madison was definitely working the cute angle. Her starting move was a combination of sweet scent and charm, sending sweet smelling pink hearts towards the audience. She then commanded her Teddiursa to use a second combination move, of feint attack and metal claw. Teddiursa's claws lengthened, and became a bright white colour. She then disappeared, reappearing every few seconds in front of a pile of hearts, before using her claws to slash them into even smaller pink hearts that glowed.

The crowd gasped in awe, as Teddiursa finally reappeared on the stage, giving the audience a bow.

The judges clapped, telling her that her performance had been very skilled. She received the score of 29.2. Madi grinned from ear to ear, and hurried off of the stage.

"And our next contestant is Gemma Takeshi," The announcer continued.

The girl with the brown pixie-style haircut stood up and calmly made her way to the stage.

She released her Pokémon, which ended up being a Pupitar.

Pupitar started off by using ancient power, creating a series of tiny boulders surrounded by a purple light. They flew around the room above the audience, before coming back to the stage and combining into one giant boulder. Pupitar then used chip away, chipping off parts of the rock, and creating a giant statue of itself. It finished off its sequence by jumping on top of the statue and sending out a barrage or dark pulses.

Gemma ended up with a score of 27.4.

A few other contestants had their performances, before another member of their group was called.

"Reuben Shu, please make your way to the main stage," The announcer called.

The green eyed boy nodded at the last remaining member of their group, and headed for the stage. He released a beautiful pale blue Vivillon.

It danced around the stage, emitting tiny blue orbs of light.

"Quiver dance," I muttered, slightly in awe at the beauty of the move.

It then scooped the orbs up in a swirling hurricane attack. It followed up this move by encasing the hurricane with light screen, making the whole move look like a giant, raging snow globe.

"Finish it off Vivillon," He called.

Vivillon flew around the orb, before using psybeam to break it open, showering the crowd in a whirlwind of tiny blue sparks.

The crowd cheered, and Reuben was given the score of 29.3.

The judges gushed over what an amazing, crowd pleasing performance he had done, and made mention of both of his parents who were two of the world's greatest coordinators. That was interesting, considering I still thought they might be members of Team Galactic.

"It is great to see you following in their footsteps," Mr. Contesta told him.

I thought a comment like that would have made him happy, or even proud. Instead he seemed to look annoyed. He thanked them for their kind words and headed off for the waiting room.

A few more people had their turns until the only people left were myself and the purple haired guy.

"Now for the second last contestant, please make your way to the stage Killian Shinji," The announcer called.

He started to head towards the door but just as he was about to exit the room, he turned towards me. My eyes locked with his, making me shiver at just how dark they were. His eyebrows were drawn together in a frown. Other than the frown, he seemed to be emotionless.

My heart skipped a beat at my fear that he would recognize me, but a few moments later he turned and left.

I watched as he reappeared on the T.V. screen, stopping in the dead center of the stage, He pulled out his pokeball, releasing a Weavile.

The Weavile started off with the move icicle crash, creating large, shiny icicles that fell from the sky. He followed that up with icy wind, sending a sparkling swirl of ice throughout the crowd. He finished off his performance with a combination of dark pulse and night slash, leaving the crowd shivering in delight.

He returned his Pokémon and headed off the stage, not even bothering to wait for the judges remarks and to see his score.

Despite his rude behavior, he was given a fairly decent score of 28.7.

Their entire group had made it into the finals, and if I was to make it too I needed a score above 25.6.

"Annie Winchester, please make your way to the stage," The announcer called. My heart thudded loudly in my chest. Would I be able to do this?

xOxOx

I took a deep breath, trying to shake off my nerves. I had once been told that Pokémon could sense their trainers emotions, so if their trainer was nervous, they would be too. When I finally thought I was as in control as I would ever be, I made my way onto the stage.

I had never been around so many people in my life. The crowd could have easily contained five hundred spectators.

I felt my hands shake slightly as I gripped my pokeball, and released Lexi onto the stage. We had practiced a million times, and we knew our sequence perfectly. I could only hope that Lexi would see past my nervousness, and not let it influence her.

"Lexi, use charge," I instructed.

Just as it had when we had been practicing, Lexi's body began to glow with a golden light as she drew electrical energy from her surroundings.

"Swift, followed by spark," I told her.

Lexi sent out a group of yellow stars towards the crowd, followed by spark. The stars drew the electricity to them like a halo, and floated in a circle around the crowd.

"Finish off with signal beam," I called.

Lexi aimed her signal beam attack at every single shooting star, causing them to explode in a sea of glittering sparks. This was the part of our routine that had taken the longest to learn, controlling signal beam to accurately hit moving targets. She finished it off perfectly, and bowed at the crowd.

They cheered loudly.

"We seem to have a lot of talented rookies tonight, your performance was mesmerizing," Nurse Joy told me.

"A marvelous use of your Pokémon's attacks, you must be a very skilled trainer," Mr. Sukizo added.

"I haven't seen anything quite like it, you will definitely have a great future in coordinating," Mr. Contesta finished.

I ended up with a score of 28.1. I had made it into the next round of judging.

Lexi jumped into my arms, "Shi, Shinx," She cried happily.

"_I knew you could do it," A voice popped into my head._

"_Thanks to you," I said back to Lucy._

"_Thanks to Lexi," Lucy corrected me._

We made our way off the stage and into the second waiting room as the announcer advised who would be making it through to the second round.

"As you all can see, those who have made it to the second round are listed on the screen above," The Announcer called "We will now select their challengers at random,"

The silhouettes of our heads began to shuffle, before stopping in pairs.

I had been partnered with a girl I had never seen before. She had short blonde hair, brown eyes, and a huge pink bow in her head. She didn't look threatening at all.

I gazed around the waiting room, and locked eyes with her. She quickly made her way towards me.

Her outfit was very poufy. Large pink sleeves, and a huge hooped skirt. She looked like a fairytale princess.

"I'm Willa," She introduced herself to me "And don't underestimate me, my looks will probably deceive you," she then scurried off without waiting for me to reply.

_Well that was weird_ I thought.

xOxOx

Our match ended up being second, after a large boy and older looking girl. The girl knocked his Grumpig out easily with her Froslass, and I guessed she must have been quite experienced.

Willa stared at me from across the battle field, her eyes shining.

"Begin match," The Announcer cried.

I released Lexi at the same time Willa released her Pokémon, A Wigglytuff.

"Use double slap," Willa called to her Pokémon.

"Dodge it and use charge," I told Lexi.

Lexi managed to dodge the first few attacks, while her body glowed with a golden light.

But the next few hit her dead on, stopping her charge and throwing her to the floor. My score bar decreased.

"Crap, crap, crap," I whispered.

"Use disarming voice," Willa continued.

"Counter it with spark," I told Lexi.

Lexi aimed her attack at the Wigglytuff at the same time Wigglytuff attacked her. Their attacks hit at the same time, throwing them both back. Both of our score bars decreased.

"Lexi, use charge, and keep Wigglytuff away with swift," I called.

"Wigglytuff, use rollout to dodge," Willa called.

Her Pokémon rolled itself up into a ball and charged towards Lexi. Willa had somehow managed to make her rollout move beautiful, with little sparks of light coming off of her Wigglytuff.

"Dodge it," I cried.

Wigglytuff was on Lexi's heel when she suddenly put on an extra burst of speed.

Wigglytuff was hit with the swift attack, causing her to stop using rollout.

The match wasn't over yet though, and our score bars were identical.

I needed to find a weakness in Wigglytuff. She didn't look as tired as Lexi, and that was a huge disadvantage to me.

"_You need to charge enough energy, and use spark," Lucy said to me._

"_I can't if she keeps attacking me so quick," I said back to her._

"_That burst of speed she used could have been quick attack. Try it out," Lucy advised me._

A plan formed in my head.

"Lexi, use quick attack," I instructed.

She turned to me in confusion.

"You can do it," I told her.

She started to run, heading straight for Wigglytuff.

"Duck to the side and use charge," I told her "Don't let Wigglytuff stop it this time,"

"Double slap, Wigglytuff," Willa called.

Wigglytuff ran after Lexi, aiming her powerful slaps at her. Lexi managed to keep a step ahead, but she was by no means using quick attack.

"Faster Lexi," I called to her.

Her speed gradually began to increase until she was a yellow blur.

"Spark," I called.

Lexi let off a huge electrical attack that his Wigglytuff dead on.

Wigglytuff flew backwards, and hit the wall, fainting.

Somehow, we had done it. We had won our first round.

Willa glared at me, returning her Pokémon. "This isn't over," She hissed at me, making her way off the stage.

I returned Lexi to her pokeball and followed after her.

As I entered the room, a hand reached out from the shadows and grabbed my wrist in a tight grip.

"What did she say to you," A cold voice asked me.

I looked up into a pair of dark eyes. I was surprised to see they were a dark shade of blue, rather than black as I originally thought. Killian Shinji.

"W-What do you m-mean?" I stuttered. Had I been caught out? Did he know who I was?

"Willa," He growled "What did she say to you?"

"S-She said… 'this isn't over'," I replied "I don't think she was happy she lost.

He released my wrist with a 'tch' sound, before turning the full force of his glare on me. "Stay away from her, if you know what's good for you," He spat at me. He turned on his heel and retreated back into the shadows. I rubbed my sore wrist, and quickly found a seat away from everyone.

What had that been about? Who were these people?

xOxOx

I watched the other matches in silence. I had to admit that this group of kids, whoever they were, were good. They easily defeated their opponents, while managing to make their moves look appealing. Somehow, Killian Shinji won his match with one move.

When the matches finally finished, the silhouettes of the victors appeared on the screen again, shuffling into new pairs.

When I saw who I was partnered with, I couldn't help but gasp.

There was no way I could beat Killian Shinji.

xOxOx

In the short time I had known Killian Shinji, his expressions had only been emotionless, or full of angry hatred. For our match he had opted with emotionless, not giving away any of his moves.

Lexi dodged attack after attack, thanks to her newfound quick attack move, but it wasn't always enough.

She was battered and bruised, while Killian's Weavile looked completely unscathed. No matter how hard I tried to get Lexi to store enough charge for her spark, he always managed to stop her. And without the charge, her spark attack barely made a dent on his Weavile. It was very well trained, and as I was a beginner, he easily outmaneuvered me.

"Use signal beam," I called out to Lexi.

She stopped running, and aimed a signal beam attack at Weavile who was right behind her. It hit dead on, but even though it should have been a super effective attack, Weavile didn't appear to be too hurt.

In fact, it kept heading towards Lexi, scraping her with its night slash attack.

Lexi fell to the ground with a whimper.

We were completely outmatched and I couldn't see any way for us to win. I briefly wondered if I should call Lexi back and admit defeat, when the buzzer sounded. Our match was over.

I wasn't surprised to see that Killian had won by a mile. He was a very skilled trainer.

He frowned at me, looking slightly confused. Then he returned his Weavile and headed back to his friends.

I returned Lexi, telling her she had done an amazing job. Lucy told me we would need to train harder if we wanted to win our matches in future. These people clearly had been training a long time, maybe even all their lives.

I decided not to stay in the main waiting room. I was out of the contest, and didn't feel exactly welcome there among people I didn't know. I dropped my Pokémon off at the Pokémon Center and decided to watch from there.

Three members of their group made it to the semi-finals; Reuben, Madi and Killian. The last place was given to the girl I had seen earlier, with the Froslass. Her name was Rebecca. Madi was partnered with Killian and Reuben had been partnered with Rebecca.

Killian's Weavile easily took down Madi's Teddiursa, while Reuben's Vivillon had a harder time against Rebecca's Froslass. In the end he won based on points.

The final match ended with a win for Killian. Reuben fought back hard, and definitely made Killian work for his win. They were both sweating by the end of the match.

They shook hands, and for the first time I saw Killian's lips curve up into a smile. A small smile, but a smile none the less.

Nurse Joy interrupted my thoughts by handing me my pokeballs.

"They're both fighting fit again," She told me "Feel free to come back any time,"

"Thank you," I replied, and headed out the door and onto the road. I hoped I would make it to the next town before those group of kids. The more they were around me, the more likely they were to find out who I was. And I had a feeling that would be very bad for me if they did.


	5. Chapter 5 - A Near Miss

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon. The only things I do own are my characters and my idea for this story. Thanks!

Chapter 5: A Near Miss

POV: Azure

The Bewilder Forest definitely lived up to its name. We had been walking for hours, and didn't seem to be getting anywhere.

"That's the same boulder," Lucy told me, pointing to a large, moss covered rock.

"It can't be," I argued.

"I marked it with an aura sphere," She countered, pointing to a large black mark on one of the sides of the rock.

"Oh, great," I muttered "What do we do now?"

"We could climb?" She suggested "See the forest from a different perspective?"

I looked around us. The only things climbable were the trees. Branches jutted out in different directions.

"What if I fall?" I asked, feeling slightly terrified.

"That could be a problem," She said thoughtfully.

I glanced at her over my shoulder to see a huge smirk on her face.

"I can do it without you?" She asked.

"Of course I won't make you go up there alone," I said with a sigh "Lexi, stand watch while we are up there please,"

"Shi!" She agreed.

It took about ten minutes to make it to the top of the tree. And about another ten minutes to find an exit to the forest. Or a plume of smoke in the distance, which we hoped was the exit. We had a long way to go before making it out of here. And there didn't appear to be any rest points – no one had made this forest their home.

We headed in the direction of the smoke, marking the trees as we passed, ensuring we wouldn't double back on ourselves.

After a few more hours of walking, we came across a small pond. Branches covered it from above, which was why we hadn't seen it while climbing the tree.

I filled up my water bottle and Lucy &amp; Lexi both had a long drink.

Lexi trotted up to me happily, saying "Shi, Shinx?"

"Are you hungry?" I asked her. She nodded. "I guess this a good place to stop for lunch,"

I took out some Pokémon food for them, and some crackers and fruit for myself. We took our time eating, since Lexi and I were both quite sore. Lucy appeared to be unfazed with the walking – so far.

After a while Lucy stopped eating. Her gaze was focused on one spot in the bushes.

"What is it?" I whispered to her.

"I feel a presence over there," She replied.

I crept over, and pulled the bushes apart. A tiny baby Stantler looked up at me in fear, making a horrible whining sound.

I clamped my hands over my ears, and tried to make soothing sounds. "It's okay, we won't hurt you. Are you lost? Where are your parents?" I asked it.

"Let me try," Lucy asked me. She went to the Stantler, and started talking to it in a language I didn't understand. It quietened almost immediately.

"I have to cut lunch short I'm afraid," Lucy told us "I told Stantler we would help him find his parents,"

"That's fine," I replied "Is he hungry?"

Lucy nodded. "And his leg is hurt,"

I handed over some Pokémon food for Stantler, and packed up our small camp while he ate. Once I was finished, I carefully picked him up and we followed Lucy in the direction Stantler had told her to.

We seemed to be heading deeper into the forest. The trees were closer together and the bushes were denser. "It's for their protection," Lucy informed me. The longer we walked, the darker it got. I could no longer tell if it was night or day. A strange sensation came over me, as though I had no idea where I was, or what I was doing. Lucy gripped my arm, and Lexi walked directly next to me, to make sure I wouldn't wonder off.

"What is this?" I asked her.

"It's the Stantler," Lucy replied "They have the ability to distort reality and create illusions,"

"No wonder we are having such a hard time getting out of this forest," I muttered.

The baby Stantler looked up at me, sensing my distress.

"Sorry," I whispered to him.

xOxOx

The forest finally opened up to a large, grassy clearing. Stantler of all shapes and sizes grazed on the grass or relaxed next to the large pond. As soon as we stepped into the clearing, they all turned towards us. That was when the panic began.

A barrage of Stantler ran towards us from all directions. There was no way we could escape; they were going to crush us in a Stampede.

The baby Stantler started to cry again, its voice so high pitched my ears began to hurt.

But the stampede stopped. It was then that I realized it was only an illusion, the real Stantler were huddled together at the other end of the clearing. Two of the adult Stantler made their way to the front of the herd, making soft noises. I carefully placed the baby Stantler on the ground, and he wobbled towards them. The baby Stantler was reunited with his parents.

The happy reunion was short lived. The ground began to shake, and a large flying aircraft appeared in the sky.

"What the heck is that?" I cried.

"This is bad," Lucy told me, paling slightly "Only one person in all of Sinnoh owns an aircraft like that,"

The aircraft door opened, and a woman with steel coloured hair peered out. Her eyes were covered by dark glasses, and she was dressed in a black cape that hugged her thin frame.

"Oh no," She sighed "Not another run in with an annoying little kid,"

I had no idea what to say to that. Who was she? And what was she here for?

"Hand over the Stantler, and no one gets hurt," She told me with an edge to her voice.

"I have no idea who you are, but why would I hand over these Stantler to you?" I asked her.

"No, not all of them. Just the small one. The rest I do not care for," She told me.

She meant the little baby we had just reunited with his parents. There was no way I was going to just hand him over.

"Very well, you leave me with no choice," She told me, throwing one of her pokeballs. A large Salamence barreled towards us. The Stantler quickly retaliated, sending a combined hypnosis attack at the Salamence. It shook it off and kept heading towards us.

"Crap, crap, crap," I whispered. I hurried towards the baby Stantler, scooped him into my arms, and hurried off into the forest. Lexi and Lucy hurried after me.

"That was a very stupid move, girl," The woman called out to me. "We will find you, and you will be punished for your actions,"

I ran as fast as I could, taking as many twists and turns as possible, but the Salamence still kept up with us, flying above the trees. "Can you attack it?" I asked Lucy.

"It's covered by the trees, I don't have a clear view," She replied, shaking her head.

We kept running, until I came to another clearing and crashed into something solid, falling backwards.

Lightning fast, a hand whipped out and grabbed onto my arm, breaking my fall.

I looked up into two dark blue eyes, pulled into a frown. Killian.

I righted myself and he let go of me "Tch, what are _you_ doing here?" He asked me.

"Oh. My. God. It's so cute," Another voice squealed. Madi pushed past him, and towards the baby Stantler. He whimpered, sending a weak hypnosis attack at her. "Well, that was rude," She muttered.

The sound of the aircraft was louder now. "What is that?" Madi asked.

"Oh, umm, well… That would be some crazy lady, who is following us," I replied "She is after this baby Stantler,"

"Hunter J," Killian scowled when she came into view.

"Oh great," Hunter J sighed "More brats,"

Killian threw his pokeball, releasing his Weavile. "Use icicle crash on Salamence," He commanded.

The sky above Salamence began to rain down with giant icicles. They crashed into it, causing it to drop out of the sky and towards the ground, the move affecting it greatly.

"Salamence, return," Hunter J called. "This isn't over, you can't watch it all the time,"

The aircraft faded, before turning completely invisible.

"That was easy," I said in surprise.

"Too easy," Another voice replied. Reuben flicked his fringe out of his face, eyeing me suspiciously. "Who are _you_?"

"Me?" I squealed, my voice slightly high pitch.

"Didn't you see her at the contest?" Madi asked him "She battled against Willa, and Killian,"

"That's not it," He said thoughtfully "You look familiar somehow,"

Willa rolled her eyes "Well duh, you saw her just a day ago,"

"_Do you think they recognize me?" I asked Lucy._

"_Not in the way that matters," She replied._

"Well, umm, do you think Stantler is safe now?" I asked them "Or will this Hunter J lady be coming back?"

"She will come back," Killian said, not an ounce of uncertainty in his voice.

"Then how will we keep Stantler safe?" I asked "We can't stay here forever,"

"You won't have to," He replied. "There is a place around here that is covered from all angles. A cave of sorts. We will lead them to it, and they will remain there, safely hidden from people like her,"

"Okay," I agreed. I led the five of them back to the Stantler herd before, once again, I headed back into the forest. We walked in silence, Killian at the front, followed by Reuben and Gemma, and Madi and Quinton in front of me. I trailed slightly behind them. By the time we reached the cave, it was night time. Killian led us through the cave, until it finally opened up into a large cavern. The ground was covered in grass, trees and shrubs, and a waterfall &amp; lake took up one side of the cavern.

"It's perfect," I whispered in awe, wondering how plants could grow in a place like this. Glancing up, I saw an opening in the roof, revealing stars from above. I placed Stantler onto the ground and he hobbled back to his parents.

Gemma frowned at him "You can't leave him like that," she pulled a large first aid kit out of her backpack, and bandaged Stantlers leg up. "My mother is one of the Nurse Joys," she explained to me "And my father is a Pokémon breeder, so he knows a lot about medicines and mending broken bones and so on. Thankfully, Stantlers leg isn't broken, it's just swollen. The bandage should fall off once the swelling goes down,"

I nodded, briefly wondering what my mother had been like. My father had been an heir to a large corporation, and a collector of rare stones. What had my mother done with her spare time? Was she a coordinator? A trainer? A breeder? Maybe I would never know.

"Are you okay?" Gemma asked me, a note of worry in her voice.

I realized I had gone slightly teary, and coughed to cover myself. "Of course I am," I replied.

"We better get going," Killian told us "If we plan to make camp any time soon,"

"I might just stay here for a little bit," I told them, pushing a strand of hair behind my ear "And make sure Stantler settles in,"

He shrugged as though he couldn't care less what I did, and headed for the exit. The rest of the group followed after him.

I settled myself into a corner of the cave, feeding Lucy and Lexi. I pulled my notebook out of my bag, and began to write a letter to Grace. I would never send it, that would be far too dangerous, but when I went back for her, I would give her all of my letters. I finished off by drawing a picture of Lucy, Lexi and the baby Stantler.

I ate a quick meal before laying out my sleeping back. I was exhausted from the day, and sleep came to me quickly.

xOxOx

I couldn't stand another night in the woods. After spending one night with the Stantler, and another night in the forest, my feet ached, and my body was covered in dirt. I longed for a nice, long shower. And I still had another day of walking before I would get to Jubilife City.

"I'm sure they have a few hotels," Lucy told me, walking briskly next to me "It shouldn't put the mission in jeopardy if we stay there for a few nights,"

Lexi, walking on the other side of me, agreed with a vigorous head nod.

We were all tired and sore. None of us were used to travelling such long distances by foot.

"I guess so," I replied "I mean, if anything happens, you will sense it, right?"

"Of course," She replied with a smile.

So it was settled, as soon as we reached Jubilife City we would set ourselves up in a nice hotel. I quickened my pace, the thought of a long, hot shower beckoning me.

xOxOx

Jubilife City was nothing like I had ever seen before. Growing up in an orphanage, I had never been to a City. It was much bigger than I had anticipated.

"Follow me!" Lucy called to me, hurrying off down an alleyway.

I hurried after her, Lexi at my heels. She turned down a few more side streets before stopping in front of a building taller than any tree I had ever seen. Perhaps even bigger than some of the mountains in Sinnoh.

"This is a hotel," Lucy told me eagerly. "You will have to return us to our pokeballs, and use your contest pass as identification to get a room. Just remember to let us out before your hour-long shower,"

"I won't forget," I promised, returning both her and Lexi to their respective pokeballs.

The front reception area of the hotel was neatly furnished &amp; decorated. A theme of grey, black, white and red stood out in the hotel. I hurried to the front desk, handing the receptionist my coordinators pass.

"My name is Annie Winchester," I told her "I would like to book a room please,"

She frowned at my appearance, taking in the layer of dirt and grime that coated my skin.

"And how will you pay for this room?" She asked.

"With cash," I replied.

"This is a fancy hotel," The lady continued, pushing her glasses up the brim of her nose "It will cost a lot of money. $1000 per night,"

I sighed, wanting this woman to shut up and let me have my room. I pulled $2000 out of my purse and handed it to her. "I will take 2 nights," I told her. "And please send up a menu, I am starving,"

She wordlessly passed me a keycard, and I hurried for the elevator. As promised, I released Lucy and Lexi before running for the shower. The feeling of the dirt leaving my body was the best I had felt in weeks. I didn't spend an hour in the bathroom, like Lucy had joked about. Once I had washed and rinsed myself a couple of times and dried off, I went back into the bedroom. The room contained two queen sized beds. Lucy and Lexi occupied one, leaving the second one for myself.

"A lady dropped this off," Lucy told me, handing me the menu I had asked about.

"Can Pokémon eat human food?" I asked her.

"Of course we can," She replied.

"How about I order us all pizza for dinner? One with lots of vegetables?" I asked.

"That sounds delicious," She replied.

"Shiiii," Shinx agreed.

I ordered the pizza and we spent the rest of the night watching horrible horror films on the T.V., before finally going to bed. I fell asleep instantly, thanks to the soft mattress beneath me.

_I couldn't breathe. Water surrounded me on all sides. I was drowning. My hand reached instinctively for my belt as I momentarily forgot I had no Pokémon. They couldn't help me now._

_I was going to die, and the only person I had to blame was myself. Why hadn't I trusted him? Why hadn't I gone with them when they asked? Why did I have to be so stupid?_

_I couldn't hold it in any longer. I opened my mouth to breathe as a hand clamped over mine. It was just a pity it was too late._


	6. Chapter 6 - An Unexpected Eeveening

Chapter 6 – An Unexpected Eeveening

I woke with a start, my chest heaving as I drew in long, shaky breaths of air. Two large eyes peered back at me.

"What happened?" I gasped.

"You were having a nightmare," Lucy replied softly, her voice lined with concern.

"It felt so real," I told her.

"What happened?" She asked me.

I told her what had happened in the dream, how essentially my Pokémon had been taken from me, and I had been left to die in a large body of water.

"That must have been awful," She shuddered "But… don't be alarmed… something has happened to the stone," she pointed at my chest.

I glanced down to see that the Galaxy Stone had fallen out of my shirt, and the tiny flecks of white were glowing brightly.

"What's happening? Why is it doing that?" I asked her.

She shook her head "I don't know. But I have always believed that the stone is connected with Arceus. Maybe he was sending you a message?"

"It wasn't a very nice message," I muttered.

"It could have been a look into the future?" Lucy suggested.

"He showed me my death?" I asked with wide eyes.

"Well, we don't know for certain," She spluttered.

"Shi, Shinx," Shinx called, trying to calm us both down.

"I guess we will have to make sure it doesn't come true. We have training to do," I informed her, grabbing both her and Lexi's pokeballs. "We will get some breakfast at a café, then find a place to train,"

"Of course," Lucy agreed, giving me a small smile. I returned them, grabbed my keycard, and headed out of the hotel. There had to be somewhere near here that would be a good spot for training. The sun was only just rising in the sky, so I knew it would be easy to find a place with no other trainers, if I could make my way around the city.

xOxOx

After getting lost several times, I eventually asked for directions from a nice elderly man. He led me to a small café, before placing his poketch next to mine and pressing a few buttons.

"I've sent you a town map," He told me "I've already marked the best spot for training, so you shouldn't get lost anymore,"

"Thank you so much," I said sheepishly "I'm not used to being in a city so large,"

"It's no problem at all," He replied "And since you aren't from around here… I feel like I should warn you that this area is occupied by… people who aren't so nice. As long as you keep your wits about you though, you should be fine,"

"Thank you for telling me," I said, trying to keep the fear out of my voice. Was it Team Galactic? "I'll be careful,"

He hurried off, and I took a table, ordering breakfast for myself and my Pokémon.

After we had finished our meal, we went to the spot located on the map. The large grassy clearing would be perfect for training, but I had no idea where to start. I had already used Lexi in a contest, and felt like this time I should use Lucy. I released her from her pokeball and asked her if she would like to be in the contest. She shuffled her feet and looked up at me with wide eyes.

"If you would like me to, I will, but there's a problem," She told me "I have a fear of large crowds,"

I thought back to the Stantler herd "You had no problem with the Stantler?" I stated.

"That was different. They were Pokémon. My problem lies with large crowds of humans," She told me with a shudder. I could understand where she was coming from, I preferred smaller groups myself.

"Would you like to train anyways? And see how we go?" I asked her.

"Okay," She sighed.

I decided we should first practice using her aura sphere, trying to get her aim perfect. We located a large rock, which she hit easily. We then found a series of smaller rocks, and practiced on them until she hit them multiple times with ease. By the time Lucy was hitting a tiny pebble dead on every time, other people had started practicing with their Pokémon in the clearing.

Feeling overcrowded, I asked Lucy if she wanted to leave.

She nodded "Plus, you don't know if any of the people here will also be in the contest," She told me.

I agreed with her. While this spot was a great place for training, there were just too many watching eyes for my comfort. Not only could a rival contestant see my contest moves, but any one of these people could be one of the shady characters the elderly man had warned me about.

As we packed up our things, a light grey blur flew past me, before jumping onto my shoulder. It grabbed a hold of my necklace cord and jumped lightly back to the ground, pulling the necklace over my head. Before I could get a glimpse of what it was, it ran back the same way it came and into the bushes. There were other brown coloured blurs harassing other trainers, taking their belongings and scurrying off quicker than the eye could follow.

"Oh no," I cried, there was no way I could let that thing take the galaxy stone! I hurried after it, determined to reclaim my stolen item, with Lucy running next to me. The grey blur flew ahead of us, and the distance between us grew. There was no way we were going to catch it at the rate we were going, it was just too fast for us. But I did have another Pokémon that was possibly just as fast. I released Lexi from her pokeball, telling her to follow it. Lucy would be able to track Lexi telepathically as she chased the grey Pokémon, so we slowed our sprint to a jog.

"Did you see what it was?" I panted.

"It was a Pokémon, that's for sure," Lucy replied "I have never seen something so fast before,"

I nodded in agreement. We needed to catch this Pokémon for our team.

We turned left and right, through different alleyways, before coming to a stop in front of a decrepit building. The windows were broken, with glass littering the pavement outside. Paint was peeling off of the building, which had definitely seen better days. I grabbed a hold of the doorknob, but although the door was grubby and broken, it was still locked.

"I'll get this," Lucy told me, before aiming an aura sphere at it.

The door splintered open with a loud bang. We hurried inside, to find the inside of the building just as run-down as the outside. There was furniture covered in dust, moth balls on the floors, couches that had holes in them and fluff piling onto the floor. But there was also a large pile of valuable items in one corner of the room. And a whole pile of tiny, fluffy, brown Eevee.

One of the Eevee stood out from the rest, carrying the Galaxy Stone in its mouth. Instead of brown fur, this one was grey.

Lexi was standing in front of them, trying to reason with them to get the Galaxy Stone back, but the Eevee refused to listen.

"They are saying that they need those items," Lucy told me "That they are for someone else,"

"Who are they for?" I asked her.

"Someone they call boss," She replied.

"Can you tell them how important that stone is?" I asked her "We need it back,"

Lucy spoke to the grey Eevee, who shook its head and refused to budge.

"How about we battle you for it?" I asked "If I catch you, you have to give that stone to me. And I will also give you something else instead,"

This got the Eevee's attention. It lifted its head and nodded, before leading us into a small, enclosed backyard behind the building. Another Eevee ran up to it, taking the galaxy stone from its friend for safekeeping.

"Lucy, you're up," I told her "Use quick attack, followed by force palm,"

Eevee easily dodged the attack with its lightning speed, before countering with its own quick attack that hit Lucy dead on. It then turned back around for a second attack.

No matter how hard we tried, Lucy just wasn't fast enough. The grey Eevee kept hitting her with powerful, quick, quick attacks that were impossible to dodge.

"Keep using protect," I told her, trying to figure out a way that we could hit Eevee with one of our attacks. And then a plan finally came to me, as Eevee turned around for another quick attack.

"Wait until the last second, then use force palm," I instructed.

Lucy hit the Eevee with a powerful force palm. It worked even better than usual, thanks to Eevee's speed adding extra force to the punch.

Eevee flew backwards, crashing into the wall behind us, and fainted instantly. It seemed all too easy, until I remembered that Eevee were weak against fighting types, and that attack would have been super effective.

I threw my pokeball at the Eevee, and crossed my fingers that this would work.

It rolled around, the center button flashing bright red, before finally it stopped with a 'poof' sound. I had caught my third Pokémon.

I picked up the pokeball and released Eevee, who looked completely dejected.

"I'm sorry you lost, but we could really use you on our team," I told it "We are planning to take down Team Galactic, and your speed would be really useful,"

I opened my backpack, and pulled out another necklace. This one was gold, with an intricate leaf patterned chain, and an azure blue lily flower pendant at the bottom. It was a necklace that had also been left to me by my parents, most likely my deceased mother. I had never worn it, for the fear of losing it or having it stolen. It was strange to just be giving it away.

"This is another necklace I own, that means a lot to me," I told Eevee "It's the only thing I had of my… well, let's just say it's precious to me. But the Galaxy Stone can't go into the wrong hands, I won't let it. At least if you had this one, no one would get hurt,"

Eevee stared at the necklace, mesmerized, before cocking her head on one side. "Eevee, eev," She shook her head.

"Eevee said she can't take that necklace, as it also means a lot to you," Lucy translated for me.

"But she has to, we had a deal," I told Lucy. I couldn't go back on the deal. I had promised to trade something else for the stone, to ensure that all of the Eevee wouldn't be reprimanded for not having enough items for their 'boss'.

"Could we…. Could we wait until the boss arrives?" I asked Lucy "And maybe help the Eevee take them down?"

Lucy shook her head "We aren't ready. Even with the help of all the Eevee, we don't know if we will be strong enough. We have only been on this journey for a very short time, we need to get more powerful before we will be able to help anyone,"

I felt deflated. We had only been on our journey for a few weeks, but we had grown so much. When would we ever be strong enough for a whole army of people if there were only a handful of us?

"We will worry about it when the time comes," Lucy told me, reading my thoughts. "For now, we really have to go,"

I turned towards the other Eevee. There had to of been over thirty of them sharing this tiny house.

"I'll come back for you all," I promised, placing the necklace on the pile of items for their boss "When I have finished doing what I need to do, I will come back and turn this place into a Pokémon sanctuary, where no one can force you to do anything you don't want to ever again,". I hadn't given much thought to the money I had inherited, but if I could renovate this place the Eevee and all other Pokémon who wished to, could live there without having to worry about thugs like Team Galactic.

I left quickly, feeling tears prick my eyes. Lucy, Lexi, and our newly acquired partner, the grey Eevee, trailed after me.

"If you want to stay with us, we have to give you a name," I told Eevee as we walked. I aimed my pokedex at her, confirming that she was indeed female. Her attacks were tackle, quick attack, charm, double team, tail whip, shadow ball and an attack I wasn't familiar with; wish. "How about Ariana? It means silver, like your fur? Maybe Ari for short,"

She smiled and nodded, happy with the name I had chosen.

After such a long morning, we headed back to the hotel room to relax and have lunch, before heading back out for more training. It was going to be a long week if we were to perfect our appeal for the contest.

xOxOx

I spent the rest of the week training Lucy. We did our best to make her moves look more appealing, while finding the perfect combinations of attacks. Lexi and Ari helped out, battling against Lucy to make her (and themselves) even stronger. With the added practice, Lucy was now able to hit both Lexi and Ari with aura sphere, even when Ari ran at her lightning speed (though just barely).

After what seemed like an endless amount of training, I thought we were finally ready. Lucy's appeal was dazzling, and I hoped the judges enjoyed it as much as I did.

After spending two amazing nights at the hotel, we had then moved on to the Pokémon center, ordering a room for the remainder of our stay in Jubilife City. Luckily we managed to get one of the last remaining single rooms, all of the others had been taken up by coordinators competing in the contest. Knowing we would be camping again after the contest, I could not bring myself to set up camp before then as well. There was only so much camping I could take. We occasionally saw the group of kids who kept showing up, who I decided to name The Mystery Team, until I knew just what side they were on.

Every time I saw them, I hurried off before they could spot me.

When the contest finally began, I huddled in the corner of the waiting room by myself, waiting for my name to be called.

It seemed to go the same as last time, with a bunch of people being called up before Quinton Ketchum.

He gave the same speech as before, showing off and goofing around with his friends, before heading off for his performance.

He appeared on the T.V screen releasing, to my surprise, an Eevee.

The Eevee started off its performance using helping hand, getting the crowd riled up, following this up with detect.

Quinton then threw a Frisbee, which soared out over the crowd, before coming back at Eevee, who caught the Frisbee in its mouth. They went through this move a few times, adding a Frisbee each time he threw, and each time Eevee caught all of the Frisbees in its mouth. This Eevee was just as fast as my own, and I couldn't help but wonder if Quinton had caught it from the same place.

He finished off his performance with charm. He was given the score of 26.7 for his originality.

Next up was Madison Takeshi. Madi threw her pokeball, which released a flurry of hearts, and an Eevee, which made me frown. Her Eevee started off using baby doll eyes, followed with natural gift, releasing a green sparkly glow. She finished off with a swift/charm combination move that sparkled over the crowd. She received a score of 28.2, and gleefully hurried after Quinton.

Gemma Takeshi was up next. She threw her pokeball, and released, yet another Eevee. Her starting move was sand attack, covering her Eevee in a blinding amount of sand. Once the sand had disappeared, a large hole was revealed, and her Eevee could no longer been seen. An array of stars flew out of the hole, perfectly aimed so that they eventually hit into each other, exploding in firework-like sparkles. Her Eevee then jumped out of the hole and landed with a bow. She received the score of 28.6.

More people went through, and I noticed that Willa was once again in this contest. As though she had heard my thoughts, she suddenly appeared next to me.

"I see you haven't given up after your last performance," She sniffed, holding her nose high in the air.

"You mean the performance where I beat you?" I replied.

She laughed in a high pitch, girly way. "Beginners luck was all that was," She told me "Just you wait, if we battle again, I will win for sure. Especially with my latest Pokémon,"

"You are not the only one with new Pokémon," I told her. Technically, all of my Pokémon were new. But she didn't need to know that.

The judge called her name, and Willa pranced towards the stage. "Just you wait and see," She told me with a mischievous grin.

Willa appeared on the T.V, doing a twirl before releasing her pokeball. Instead of an Eevee, Willa had one of the evolved forms of Eevee, a Sylveon. Her starting move was a fairy wind/misty terrain combination, followed by moon blast. The effect was breathtaking. She finished up by using dazzling gleam, making her Sylveon shine. Unsurprisingly, Willa received the score of 29.5. She grinned towards the camera, and it felt like she had aimed her smug smile at me.

A few more people went, before it was Reuben's turn.

He said a few words to Killian before hurrying on to the stage.

Reuben threw his pokeball, releasing… another Eevee.

I was starting to feel really suspicious. The Eevee had told Lucy that they collecting things for their 'boss'. Could this boss have been Team Galactic? And were the members of Team Mystery, being rewarded for collecting these stolen items with their own Eevee? What were the chances that we all could have captured our own Eevee in the same time frame? I shivered at the thought of being so close to the enemy.

Reuben's Eevee started off its performance by using captivate.

The audience cooed over its cuteness.

He followed this up with a quick attack/swift combination, making his Eevee use quick attack to run in a wide circle while using swift at the same time. The result was a starry tornado.

He finished off his appeal with trump card, throwing bright, sparkly, red orbs at the stars, sending them shooting over the crowd.

The crowd cheered, and he received the score of 27.4.

More people completed their appeals until I was once again left alone with Killian.

He frowned at me, before saying "I saw you talking with Willa again,"

I sighed "She was only trying to scare me out of the competition,"

His eyes flashed "She's more dangerous than she looks. Stay away from her,"

His name was called over the loud speaker, and he quickly turned away from me and headed for the stage.

"I can look after myself," I called after him.

He paused, his head slightly turning towards me. "I seriously doubt that," He told me, before hurrying out of the room.

He reappeared on the stage, and threw his pokeball, releasing, as I expected, another Eevee. His Eevee was slightly different to the others. It was quite a bit larger, and its fur was a darker shade of brown.

He started off by using stored power, followed by a baton pass/quick attack combination. His Eevee threw the baton, then ran at lightning speed to the spot where the baton was thrown, before catching it. He finished off his performance by unleashing the stored power in Eevee. Colourful orbs flew from Eevee's body, and out over the crowd. It was a beautiful move. He received the score of 28.3.

"Now let's welcome our final performer, Annie Winchester!" The announcer called.

This was it, it was finally my turn. Fingers crossed Lucy could pull off everything we had practiced in front of a large crowd of people. I took a deep breath to calm my nerves, before making my way to the stage.


	7. Chapter 7 - The Road to Oreburgh

Chapter 7: The Road to Oreburgh

POV: Azure

"Its fine," I told Lucy for the hundredth time, pushing tree branches away from my face.

"It was a disaster," She cried helplessly.

Shinx brushed her face against Lucy comfortingly.

"See, Lexi agrees with me! Look at it this way, when we finally rescue my dad, you are going to be surrounded by Galactic Members, most likely. We are conquering your fear of crowds," I said optimistically, hoping to cheer her up.

She caught on and sighed "You are only trying to make me feel better,"

"Well, it is the truth," I told her "We need to fix this one way or another. Contests are the perfect way,"

She nodded sadly.

I flashed back to our contest.

_Lucy was frozen with fear, her body trembling as she looked out over the expectant crowd. _

_The judges made a few quips at how my Pokémon seemed rooted to the spot, and a few crowd members made some mean remarks about useless performances._

"_We can go away if you want?" I told her "We don't have to do this,"_

"_I'm sorry," She replied. She closed her eyes and breathed in, while the announcer went on about how my Pokémon had stage fright, and whether we would ever start. I wished they would stop talking, as they really weren't helping our situation._

_When Lucy opened her eyes, she seemed a little calmer._

"_Are you okay to go on?" I asked her._

_She nodded, took a deep breath, and started her performance._

_Our starting move was iron defense, making Lucy's body shine silver. She followed up this move with hidden power, releasing a group of shiny orbs over the crowd, before using aura sphere, hitting each hidden power orb dead on. Our aim practice had paid off. Each orb exploded into tiny sparkles. She finished off our round with vacuum wave, waving her arms around to create light blue wind that surrounded her body. She then crossed her arms and jumped into the air, before opening them and releasing the attack in the shape of a heart into the air. _

_Riolu couldn't usually use vacuum wave in the shape of a heart, but we had practiced for ages, watching many videos of Croagunk using the same attack, until Lucy had finally managed to do it. _

_The crowd cheered for Lucy, her performance (once she had managed to shake off her stage freight) had been flawless. _

"_After your rocky start, you pulled off your performance remarkably," Nurse Joy told us._

"_An amazing performance, though you may want to work on your Pokémon's fear of large crowds," Mr. Contesta agreed. _

"_I can only hope that your slow start will not retract too many points after a remarkable performance like that," Mr. Sukizo told us. _

_In the end we scored 24.8, and I could only hold my breath that we would make it through. We hurried into the waiting room, where I was immediately bombarded by a smirking Willa._

"_Well, that performance was a little…. Slow," She grinned at me "Where did you get that Pokémon from; the Slakoth forest?"_

_I was about to open my mouth and fire back at her, when another voice said "Don't you have somewhere else to be, Willa?" _

_Killian leaned against the wall, glowering at us. _

_I sighed, and walked in the opposite direction, leaning against the wall furthest from them all._

_The scores were tallied and faces began to appear on the screen, showing us who would be in the next round. _

_Unfortunately, we hadn't made it. My face was not on the screen._

_I slipped out of the room silently, and started heading for the Pokémon center. I didn't want anyone else, especially Lucy, to see just how upset I was. Plus we had a lot of walking to do before the next town._

xOxOx

Lucy groaned, once again reading my mind.

"I'm sorry!" I told her.

"I think we need to work on your telepathic barrier," She informed me "It is way too easy to read your thoughts,"

I shrugged "If you think so,"

We made our way through the forest at a steady pace, passing many flying, grass and bug type Pokémon, until we came across a cave. There was no way around the cave, as a rocky cliff lined both directions, and it was too steep to climb over.

"Does this seem right to you?" I asked Lucy.

"I'm pretty sure it is," She replied "And there is only one way to find out,"

We headed into the cave, which was completely dark. I reached into my backpack and pulled out my torch, which gave off barely enough light to see where we were going. There were a few different pathways we could take, so we chose one at random. We hadn't gone very far when I tripped over something, and fell to the ground.

"Dude, Geodude," The Pokémon exclaimed angrily.

"I'm sorry!" I apologized, which didn't seem to make it feel any better. It growled again, before throwing a whole pile of large rocks at us.

"Veeee," Ari cried, running off into the tunnel.

"Crap, crap, crap," I muttered, running after her, a barrage of rocks flying after us.

We ran for quite a while, Ari too afraid to slow down, when we started to hear voices.

"This cave is perfect," One person cried "Just look at all of these precious stones!"

"Never mind the stones, look at those fossils," Another person added.

I peered around the corner, to see a man and a woman looking at a large rocky opening that glimmered with jewels.

Eevee growled softly, pointing at their outfits. They were members of Team Galactic.

"There's no way around them," Lucy pointed out to me "That Geodude blocked the path with its rock smash,"

"What can we do?" I asked her.

"I don't know, it looks like they have two Pokémon each, we're outnumbered," She replied.

We waiting in the shadows, hoping that they would eventually leave the cavern when their bags were full of jewels. But this didn't seem to happen. The female member pulled out a cellphone, ringing in for backup.

"It's now or never," I told my Pokémon "Once their backup comes we will have no chance of getting out of here,"

"Shi," Lexi agreed.

We stepped out from our hiding place, and the Galactic members whirled around, finally spotting us.

"What do we have here?" The female said loudly "A nosey little brat, who doesn't know how to mind her own business?"

"I do believe you're right, Alexandria," The man agreed with her.

"I don't want any trouble," I told them "I just want to get through the cave,"

"You don't want any of these jewels?" The woman asked me, waving her hand at them "I wouldn't believe that for a second," she pulled out both of her pokeballs, releasing a Dustox and a Purugly.

The man joined her, releasing a Raticate and a Skuntank.

We were clearly outmatched, none of my Pokémon had evolved yet, and I had little experience in Pokémon battling, let alone commanding all 3 of my Pokémon at once.

"Lucy, use multiple aura sphere, Lexi use charge and spark, Ari use shadow ball," I told them.

I wasn't sure how long we could keep this up. My Pokémon began to tire quickly. I kept calling out attacks for them, and yelling at them when they needed to dodge oncoming attacks. Eventually more voices came down the hall, and a small group of Galactic grunts entered the cavern.

"What do we have here?" One of them said "Can't defeat a little newby Alexandria and Gabriel?"

"Shut up," The woman snapped at him.

"I guess we can always help you," He added.

The woman gritted her teeth but didn't say anymore.

There was no way we could beat all six of them.

"That wouldn't be very fair," A voice said from behind him.

How they had gotten here so fast was beyond me, but Killian, Madison, Gemma, Reuben and Quinton were standing behind the latest Team Galactic members.

"Killian Shinji, we meet again," The man said, spreading his arms wide in welcome. "It will be interesting to see how far you have come since our last encounter,"

"Are you okay?" Madi asked me, making her way to my side. I looked down at my disheveled appearance, wondering how my clothes had gotten so torn and bloodied. I thought back to the rock fall the Geodude had caused, thinking that I might have been hit a few times by the flying boulders.

Panic set in the pit of my stomach as I reached up to my wig, though thankfully it was still in place, hiding my real hair underneath.

"I think so," I told her.

"Don't worry, we've got it from here. You can call back your Pokémon," She told me.

I reluctantly did as she said. My Pokémon were beyond tired, but they were outmatched 5 to 6.

They released 2 Pokémon each, and I was surprised to see the Mystery Team get the upper hand on Team Galactic.

"Grab those bags," The man yelled at them "We're leaving," he threw a small ball at the ground, which erupted in a cloud of smoke. When the smoke cleared they were gone.

"Why is it that every time there is trouble, you seem to be at the center of it?" Killian glowered at me.

"I… I… I don't know," I spluttered.

I wondered, again, who these people were. It was obvious that they weren't members of Team Galactic, unless they had rivals within the organization? I shook my head, feeling confused.

"Leave her alone," Madi yelled at him, turning her attention once again to my cuts and bruises. Now that the adrenaline had worn off, my body ached all over. "We aren't that far from the exit," She told me "Do you think you will be okay?"

"Sure," I replied, I was a lot tougher than I looked.

"What made you think you could take on a group of Galactic members?" Killian continued, his dark blue eyes locked with mine "Are you that stupid?"

"I had nowhere else to go," I muttered, looking at the ground "A Geodude blocked my way from behind with rock smash, and there were only two when I first got here. When they called for more people I thought I had a better chance defeating two than I would six. They just got here so fast,"

"Tch," Killian muttered "We better get out of here. You will stay with us until we get to Oreburgh,"

Panic gripped my chest, but if Team Galactic came back I would be better off being with them than I would if I was alone.

I nodded in agreement "Okay,"

"_It will be okay," Lucy told me._

I could only hope she was right.

xOxOx

It seemed very strange to be setting up camp with other people, but it was getting too dark to continue. Oreburgh was another half a day's walk, and we were all tired and famished.

While the others set up camp, I cooked a large pot of creamy celery soup, serving it with a loaf of bread I had gotten back in Jublilife City.

"Wow, this tastes amazing," Madi exclaimed.

Quinton agreed with her, guzzling down his bowl and making his way back for seconds.

"Thanks," I mumbled. I looked up at the stars, wondering how much longer it would be before I could finally find my father. Tonight had been another indication of just how far I had to go before I could even think of battling Team Galactic.

"So where did you learn to cook?" Gemma asked me "None of us are really any good at it, except maybe Killian and Reuben,"

"Hey!" Madi exclaimed.

"You know it's true," Gemma fired back.

I blanched, feeling heat rise to my face. How could I tell them without giving away my secret? Whoever they worked for were looking for me, and I had no doubt they knew I was an orphan. If I gave them the story of cooking every night with the other girls to ensure that the sisters wouldn't beat us, they could figure out who I really was.

"_Your mother?" Lucy suggested._

"My mother," I blurted.

The way I spoke made the others look at me with wide eyes.

"She must be an amazing woman," Gemma continued, shifting her eyes back to her meal.

We ate the rest in silence, before feeding our Pokémon.

I hurried to my tent early, fearful that they would start asking me more questions.

"_We can't stay with them for long," Lucy agreed._

xOxOx

After Madi smeared my cuts and bruises with a sticky ointment (she had insisted), we continued towards Oreburgh City.

"Your Riolu should help you a lot against Roark, if you plan on doing gym battles as well," Gemma told me. The girls walked on either side of me, with the boys slightly further ahead.

"Oh, will that be enough?" I asked them.

"Probably not, he does have a couple of Pokémon," Madi replied "And your other two probably wouldn't be any good against them,"

"I'm sure there will be time for you to catch another," Gemma told me "I mean this forest is huge, and Oreburgh has these huge cliffs,"

I sighed, it was going to be a long day. The next contest was in another city, but wasn't for two more weeks. I had planned on using Eevee, but with the way the last contest had gone, I had changed my mind thinking Lucy could use the practice. Gyms didn't have as many spectators, but maybe I could work Lucy up to participating in contests again this way, and then Ari could be used in her first contest.

"I don't mind doing gyms for a while," Lucy agreed, looking up at me. She was my only Pokémon who felt strong enough to be out of their pokeball. Ari and Lexi were both safely resting in their pokeballs before we could go to the Pokémon Center in Oreburgh.

Gemma had healed them as much as she could, but she couldn't cure their fatigue. Still, we had gotten in a lot of battle training before Team Mystery had rescued us.

I trailed back from the group, talking to Lucy with my mind about the upcoming battles and contests, and what our next plans would be. She thought it would be a good idea to catch another Pokémon for our gym battle, but only if I could find one with a type advantage. And that she would compete in gym battles, working up enough courage before competing in another contest.

I felt Killian glancing back at us, and told Lucy we should probably cool down our talking, as it was becoming a bit obvious. Although they had saved me twice already, I didn't know them well enough to start telling them more about myself.

When we eventually arrived in Oreburgh, Killian gave his friends different jobs to do "Madi &amp; Gem, you're in charge of food and medical supplies. Quinton and Reuben have a look around. I'll report in-" he stopped mid-sentence, glancing at me.  
"Well, uh, thanks for… you know… helping me back in the cave," I said to them, feeling my cheeks redden. "I'm just going to go to the Pokémon Center now,"

I turned on heel and hurried quickly away from them.

"Annie?" Killian's voice drifted towards me.

"Uh yeah?" I asked, glancing back over my shoulder.

"The Pokémon center is that way," He told me, pointing in the opposite direction I was walking.

"Oh, right," I mumbled, hurrying the way he pointed.

I heard him mumble under his breath "Stupid girl," as I walked past, making me blush even more.

"Killian," Madi scolded.

I made it to the Pokémon center in record time, handing Nurse Joy my Pokémon. We booked a room, and headed back out towards the cliffs Gemma had mentioned. It was time to catch a new member for our team.


	8. Chapter 8 - A Rocky Outcome

Chapter 8: A Rocky Outcome

POV: Azure

"This is useless," I sighed, collapsing to the floor in exhaustion.

Lucy frowned down at me "Nothing good in life ever comes easy," She told me "I thought you knew that,"

I blew a raspberry at her "Of course it doesn't," I replied "But I thought we would have caught _something_ by now," the forest was full of bug and flying type Pokémon, but I was yet to see a grass type.

She looked around "Maybe we should try another spot?" Lucy suggested, pointing towards an edge of the cliff that was covered in moss.

"Okay," I sighed "We will give it a go,"

We made our way to the area, revealing a small waterfall. "Wow, this is pretty," I exclaimed.

"There doesn't appear to be any useful water types though," Lucy pointed out. A few Magicarp swam lazily at the bottom.

"Where do you think this leads to?" I asked Lucy "The Magicarp couldn't have gotten here alone,"

She nodded in agreement "Maybe we should have a look up there," she pointed at the waterfall.

"The waterfall?" I said skeptically.

She laughed "No, silly, behind it,"

As I looked for a little bit longer, it became clear that there was a cave behind the waterfall.

"So, we have to climb up there?" I asked her, my voice coming out high pitched as I remembered back to the tree in the bewildered forest.

"Well, that is the only way," She replied.

I sighed, I would really need to catch myself a flying type Pokémon soon, so that I could stop climbing up things.

After a few deep breaths, I grabbed onto the first rock I could reach and pulled up my legs, resting them on another rock. I kept doing this one at a time until Lucy suddenly said "You're there!"

Sure enough, I had made it to the ledge behind the waterfall.

Lucy climbed after me, and at a much quicker pace.

Once we were both at the top, we began our walk through the cave. The cave walls were damp and sticky, covered in a thin layer of moss. The floor wasn't much better.

"If it wasn't so pretty in here, this would be gross," I told Lucy.

She shrugged "I kind of like it,"

The further into the cave we walked, the dryer it became. The walls were no longer damp and mossy, but dry and dusty. It was getting hotter with every step we took.

"What is this?" I puffed.

"I'm not sure," Lucy replied "But I bet we will start to see more than just Zubat,"

Sure enough, the ground started to become less smooth, with bumps appearing here and there.

"I'm sensing ground type Pokémon," Lucy told me "Probably Diglet, maybe a few Sandshrew,"

As she spoke, a Diglet popped out from the ground in front of us, before scurrying away.

"Maybe we should add a ground type to our team?" I mused, though the idea of a Diglet or Sandshrew wasn't very appealing to myself.

"They are good against rock types," Lucy agreed.

We stopped talking for a while, concentrating on where to walk. The cave was getting darker and rockier the further we went.

"At least it's just one way," I said optimistically.

I spoke too soon of course. We suddenly came to a stop in front of three different openings.

"Eeny, meeny, miny, mo?" Lucy suggested.

We ended up choosing the right entrance, which led us to a dead end. Once we returned to the same spot, we chose the left entrance. This one was at a slant, descending further into the cave.

"I wonder where we're going," I said to Lucy.

"I have a strange feeling about this," She replied, looking around nervously.

The air around us was getting drier the more we descended, and the passageway was getting wider and wider, until it opened into a very large underground room, filled with ground type Pokémon. Diglet, Sandshrew, the occasional Cubone, Phanpy, Drilbur and their evolutionary lines, as well as the odd single Pokémon. They eyed us wearily, looking tense and ready to strike at a moment's notice. One of the single Pokémon caught my eye, a small ant-like Pokémon huddled in one corner.

"That one is really cute," I said to Lucy, pointing out the tiny Pokémon.

"That's a Trapinch," She told me "And it looks like it's just a baby. They usually live in the desert and in groups though, so I am not sure what it is doing in this cave alone,"

I slowly walked towards it, hoping that I wouldn't frighten it away. "Hey little guy, what are you doing here?" I asked it.

"Pinch?" It said hesitantly, looking up at us.

"Where is your family?" I asked it again.

"Pi?" It asked again, confused.

"We can't just leave him here," I told Lucy "We have to take him with us,"

Lucy turned towards the Trapinch and started speaking with him in Pokémon language. She eventually turned back to me and said "He said he will come with us if you beat him in a battle,"

I looked at the tiny Pokémon, thinking there was no way he was going to win.

"Okay then, just go easy on him," I told Lucy.

We started off by using aura sphere, and I was surprised to see the Trapinch dodge it easily, by burying underground.

He came up below Lucy, pushing her into the air.

"Lucy, use protect," I called to her, minimizing the impact of her hitting the ground.

Trapinch kept on dodging our attacks by burrowing underground, but his attacks didn't get very far with Lucy either. It was like a game of cat and mouse, with one Pokémon attacking while the other dodged.

It didn't take long before they both began to tire.

While the battle wore on, I tried to look for weaknesses and come up with a strategy.

Trapinch burrowed underground once more, when I yelled out "I've got it! Listen to the ground, you should be able to hear when Trapinch is about to dig out. Wait until the last second, before jumping up high and aiming aura sphere in the ground,"

"This could work," Lucy agreed, placing her ears to the ground.

After a few moments of waiting, she jumped up, aiming her attack at Trapinch at the same time he dug out of the ground. The attack hit him dead on.

He made a high pitched squeal sound, before burrowing back under the ground. The sound drew the attention of the Pokémon around us, who didn't look happy at all.

"I'm picking up hostile thoughts towards us, for attacking a baby Pokémon," Lucy told me "We should probably get out of here,"

"Okay," I agreed.

The moment we turned towards the exit, the Pokémon sprang into action, running after us.

"Crap, crap, crap," I muttered.

We hurried out of the cavern, and back through the rocky passageway. After a while, the Pokémon began to give up, returning to their home.

"That…. Was…. Horrible," I gasped "And we have nothing to show for it!"

Lucy nodded, too tired to say anything.

We rested on the ground, trying to get a racing hearts back to normal. A rumbling sound grabbed our attention, and the little Trapinch came out of the ground in front of us, speaking animatedly.

"Trap, pinch, pi, tra," He said.

"He says he is sorry about what happened, and would like to come with us, since we were going to win anyways," Lucy told me.

I grinned "Really?"

Lucy nodded, so I took out a Pokeball and gently tapped Trapinch on the top of his head. I caught him straight away, before releasing him and my other Pokémon.

"Everyone, meet Trapinch. Trapinch, this is my team; Lucy you have already met, and this is Lexi and this is Ariana," I introduced Trapinch to my team.

He replied with a shy "Pi,"

I checked out his Pokémon moves with my pokedex; sand attack, quick attack, earth power, mudslap, dig &amp; bite.

As we walked back through the cave, I started to think of names for our new friend.

"How does Antario sound to you?" I asked him.

"Trapinch!" He nodded happily.

As we came to the exit, I returned all of my Pokémon to their pokeballs, except for Lucy who helped me back down the rocky cliff. We then hurried back to Oreburgh Pokémon Centre, so I could heal my Pokémon. I was surprised to see that the sky had darkened and the stars were now out. I had spent almost the whole day in the caves.

As I stepped into the Pokémon Centre, I ran into Madi. "Annie!" She said to me "Did you want to join us for dinner? We're just at the restaurant next door. Or everyone else is, I was running a little late," She gave a breathy laugh while pushing a strand of perfect hair behind her ear.

"Oh, Hi Madi," I replied, feeling slightly awkward "No that's fine, I already ate,"

My stomach rumbled as I spoke, making Madi frown.

"Well if you change your mind, you're welcome to join us," She told me.

She headed out of the Centre, and I gave my Pokémon over to Nurse Joy. Once they were healed, I went over to the convenience store, grabbing some ingredients to make sandwiches, as well as a few other small things. I then hurried back to my room, making myself dinner and placing the rest of my food into the small fridge next to my bed. The small room I had booked contained a single bed, dresser, and a small kitchen nook with a bar fridge, kettle, toaster and an electric frying pan. A sink and shelf containing a glass, a bowl, a plate and some cutlery completed the room. It was a fairly standard room for all Pokémon Centers.

I fed my Pokémon before climbing into the bed.

"We have a big day tomorrow," I told them all "We are going to start our training for this city's gym leader. I haven't decided who I'll be using yet, so I'll be training you all,"

They all nodded, before curling up into bed with me. I fell asleep as my head hit the pillow.

xOxOx

We spent the next five days training. I trained with my Pokémon both individually, as well as making them battle each other. I had already decided which Pokémon I would be using for my gym battle. I was allowed to use three Pokémon, and since Lexi had a huge type disadvantage she would be watching from the sidelines. I had managed to avoid Team Mystery for the rest of my stay, but the morning of my sixth day at Oreburgh, I ran into them at the café next to the Pokémon Center. They had all already obtained their first badges.

"You caught your fourth Pokémon!" Gemma pointed out.

"Oh, yeah," I replied, with a small smile "And you got your badges,"

"Yep," Madi grinned at me, tossing her shiny pink hair over one shoulder "It was easy! My Mudkip thrashed Roark's Pokémon,"

"No need to gloat," Gemma whispered to her sister.

Madi ignored her, continuing "So what did you catch?"

"A Trapinch," I replied with a shrug.

"Really?" Gemma said "They aren't usually found in this area,"

I shrugged again, not sure what else I could say to her.

"Did you want to join us?" Quinton asked with a mouthful of food.

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Madi chastised.

I felt a pang seeing them all act this way; I missed Grace considerably. I sat down in an empty seat and ordered myself some breakfast. Before the waitress had a chance to return, a phone started to ring.

Killian pulled it out of his pocket and answered with a simple "Yep,"

After a quick conversation he told his group "We have to go,"

They stood without question "Sorry Annie," Madi apologized, before heading out with her friends.

"Well that was weird," I muttered. The waitress returned with my food, and I ate quickly before heading towards the gym. It was time for my first ever gym battle. My food churned in my stomach, making me regret the decision to eat before my battle.

"No turning back now," I told myself. Beating the gym leader would be another step towards my goal. I could do this.

xOxOx

"Welcome! This is he Oreburgh Pokémon Gym! I'm Roark, the Gym Leader! I'm but one Trainer who decided to walk proudly with Rock-type Pokémon! As the Gym Leader, I need to see your potential as a trainer. And, I'll need to see the toughness of the Pokémon that battle with you!" Roark said to me, pulling out his first pokeball. He pressed the middle button, releasing a Geodude.

I released my first Pokémon; Ari.

"Veee," She cried happily.

"Geodude, use rollout," Roark commanded.

Geodude's body started to roll on the spot, before dashing towards Eevee.

"Eevee, use quick attack to dodge, and follow it up with shadow ball," I called.

Ari's quick attack gave an added boost to her already fast run, and she dodged Geodude easily, before swinging around and aiming her shadow ball attack at it.

It hit Geodude head on, causing him to lose control of his rollout.

"Seismic toss," Roark called.

His Geodude hurried towards Ari, and before she could dodge, Geodude grabbed a hold of her.

"Ari, use wish," I told her.

Ari's body sparkled as Geodude lifted her high into the air.

"Now use shadow ball again," I added.

As Geodude hurtled towards the ground, Ari aimed a shadow ball attack at him. The attacks hit simultaneously, throwing them both backwards.

They both appeared to be in bad shape. Then Ari's body sparkled again, and she regained health, looking much healthier than the exhausted Geodude.

"Geodude, use rollout," Roark called again.

"Double team, Ari!" I yelled at her.

Ari's double team attack failed, as Geodude swung around, making sure to hit each and every mirage version of her.

He slammed into her head on, making her fly backwards into a group or rocks.

"Vee," She cried out in pain, before fainting.

I had failed in defeating Roark's first Pokémon. I had failed my Pokémon friend.

"I'm so sorry Ari," I whispered, returning her to her pokeball.

I then released Antario, who looked tiny compared to Geodude.

"Antario, use dig," I called.

He dug underground, narrowly missing another rollout attack from Geodude.

Geodude span out of his attack, looking around confused.

Antario came up from below him, throwing him into the air.

"Follow up with mud-shot!" I called.

Mud-shot pushed Geodude further into the air, causing damage at the same time.

"Geodude, use seismic toss to stop your fall," Roark countered.

The seismic toss attack caused Geodude to fall with less damage, but he was still hurt from the ending crash.

"Finish up with earth power!"

Trapinch's body glowed with a golden light, as he jumped up and pounded the ground. His attack wasn't overly huge, as he was still quite small, but he had enough power to cause a few golden cracks in the ground, that spread out towards Geodude. The attack hit him head on, and the force caused him to fall to the ground and faint.

"I'm impressed, but this battle isn't over yet," Roark told me, releasing his second Pokémon; Onix.

"Antario, use dig," I commanded.

Roark smirked "Going with the same strategy, I see," he said "Follow him,"

Onix dived into the ground on top of Antario's hole, following him through his tunnel beneath our feet.

"Crap, crap, crap," I muttered "Antario, come back to the surface,"

"Not so fast, Onix use earthquake," Roark commanded.

The ground beneath us shook and cracked.

Antario finally appeared at the surface, looking worn out and sore.

Onix appeared after him, looking as though his earthquake attack had hurt him as well.

"Use sand attack to hide yourself, and follow it up with earth power," I told Trapinch.

Trapinch kicked up enough sand to completely cover the gym arena, before pounding the ground with his earth power attack. A loud bang followed soon after. Once the sand cleared, it was revealed that we had defeated Onix.

"My last Pokémon won't be so easy to beat," Roark told us, returning his Onix. He then released his final Pokémon, a Rampardos.

He left no time between releasing his Pokémon and attacking, telling his Rampardos to use Zen headbutt. The force of the attack threw Trapinch out of the arena, knocking him out cold.

Roark grinned at me "I told you this one wouldn't be easy,"

I returned Trapinch to his pokeball "You did good, buddy," I told him.

I then turned to Roark and said "My last Pokémon won't be easy either,"

I released Lucy, who looked happy to finally have her turn at battling.

Roark started off with the same move, but this time I was ready, and Lucy dodged easily.

Our battle continued on that way, with Roark attacking and Lucy dodging. Roark didn't leave any openings.

After about ten minutes of intense battling, I finally found my opening.

"Lucy, use aura sphere," I called. Finally the attack hit Rampardos. But it also left Lucy open to his flamethrower attack.

We threw a few more attacks at each other until our Pokémon were exhausted. I could tell it was coming towards the end.

"Let's liven this up," Lucy told me "He can counter all of our attacks, because he knows exactly what we are going to do. Let's communicate telepathically, so he won't know when to counter,"

"Alright, start off with quick attack and finish with a jumping force palm," I told her.

Our attack completely took Roark off guard, as he tried to counter the original quick attack. Our attacks continued to take Roark off guard, until we made our final move.

Lucy waved her arms around, creating a light blue wind that surrounded her body. She crossed her arms in front of her before jumping into the air, and releasing her heart shaped attack at Rampardos. The attack hit Rampardos dead on, and he fell to the ground, his eyes swirling.

We had won. We had gotten our first badge.

"You battle well," Roark told me, returning his Rampardos "And I can tell you really care for your Pokémon," He handed my badge to me. "The next town you should aim for would be Eterna City,"

I thanked him for his kind words, accepted my badge, and made my way back to the Pokémon center. The day had only just begun, so once my Pokémon were healed, I could still make my way to Floarama Town. In less than a week, I would be in a new town, preparing for my next contest, and closer to my goal of rescuing my dad.


	9. Chapter 9 - Contest Pains

Chapter 9: Contest Pains

POV: Azure

My head was throbbing. I had never felt such an intense headache in my life.

"Maybe we should rest?" Lucy suggested "You really don't look so good,"

I blinked down at her "No, no, we're almost there, I can feel it,"

"We have a few more days to go still," She replied with a look of concern.

"Oh," I replied, closing my eyes against the pain in my skull. Of course, closing my eyes also meant I wasn't looking where I was going, and I tripped and fell to the ground.

"See, we should rest," Lucy told me.

"Maybe just for a few minutes," I replied, curling up into a ball and gritting my teeth against the pain.

My ears began to ring, making me groan. It was as though I was dying.

Just as suddenly as the headache came on, it disappeared.

I sat up shakily, looking at Lucy. "It's gone," I told her.

"That's weird. I've never heard of a headache like that before," She told me "You were practically screaming in pain,"

I blinked at her, I had only opened my mouth to groan.

"Telepathically," She explained. "And I thought our mind-training had been coming along quite well,"

"Huh," I said out loud "Let's get going before it decides to come back,"

She nodded in agreement.

We kept walking, until we came across a long, beautifully constructed bridge.

"Where are we?" I asked Lucy.

"If my calculations are correct… this is Alamos Town," She told me.

"Have we been walking the right way?" I asked her "I thought we were going to Floaroma Town,"

"I guess we must have taken a detour," Lucy said sheepishly "You weren't paying much attention to where you were going, and I was paying attention to you,"

"Oh well, I guess we can stay here the night," I told her.

We crossed the bridge, and a flyer pasted against a shop window caught my eye. "This town has a contest!" I told Lucy "And it's tomorrow!"

"We should definitely enter," Lucy told me.

"But who will I enter this time?" I asked her.

"Not me," She replied quickly "Maybe Lexi since she didn't get a chance in the gym battle, and she already has contest training so it shouldn't be too hard to put together a quick routine with her,"

I gave a small chuckle, knowing the exact reasons why Lucy didn't want to be my leading Pokémon in the contest.

"Okay, Lexi it is," I said, releasing Lexi from her pokeball. "Would you like to be in a contest tomorrow?" I asked her.

She grinned up at me, and jumped around in delight.

"Okay, then let's register and get into training!" I said, pumped up for a new contest.

xOxOx

After booking our room at the Pokémon center and registering for the contest, I headed for a part of Alamos that seemed to be deserted, and started my training.

I started Lexi on the basic aim training, throwing rocks and pebbles in the air and getting her to hit them with electrical attacks. After a few misses, Lexi began to hit them all perfectly.

We then switched from spark to signal beam, perfecting Lexi's aim with this attack as well.

After practicing all of her moves, I began to put together a series of attacks for our appeal round, as well as working on a new secret move.

It was difficult to make this appeal different to our last contest, and teach Lexi a new move, but after a while we had finally put something together I was satisfied with.

"Oh wow, where did the day go?" I asked my Pokémon, surprised to see the sky lit up with orange light. It was almost night time.

"I'm starving," Lucy told me.

"Me too, and I'm sure all of the other Pokémon are," I said, feeling guilty that I had made Lexi train for the whole afternoon without stop.

"Let's go somewhere nice," I told my Pokémon, heading back to a restaurant we had passed before our training. I treated my Pokémon to an amazing meal that cost a lot more than I had planned, before we headed back to the Pokémon Center. I showered, and changed into my pajamas, before falling into a restless sleep, filled with flashing images.

I woke up the next morning feeling like my eyes were filled with sand, and my headache was back again.

"You were screaming again," Lexi told me tiredly.

"I'm sorry," I groaned, sitting up in bed.

"Let's get ready for the contest," She said sadly.

xOxOx

Looking around the room, I was surprised to see that The Mystery Team were nowhere in sight. This would be the first contest I had entered without them.

I raked a hand over my face, feeling the tension from my headache. It was going to be interesting competing in a contest when my head was throbbing.

I watched a few performances, noting how good these contestants were, before it was finally my turn.

I headed to the stage and released Lexi, her starting out her performance with sparks flying from her body.

We continued our performance with Lexi using quick attack in a circular movement, followed by swift. This combination created a small, starry tornado.

"Keep that up and use charge," I called to Lexi.

Her body glowed yellow, at the bottom of the tornado.

"Now use charge beam," I said.

Lexi stopped running, her body surrounded by yellow sparks. She aimed a massive electrical attack in the center of the tornado, which hit all of the stars on its ascent towards the ceiling. As the charge beam hit the stars, they exploded into sparkling lights.

Lexi finished our performance with a bow.

"What an amazing performance," Nurse Joy said "Your Pokémon looks so happy on the stage,"

"Agreed, your Pokémon seems to love the life of a performer," Mr. Contesta added.

"A lovely performance," Mr. Sukizo finished.

Lexi and I headed to the next waiting room with the contestants who had already performed, her skipping with excitement next to me.

When the scores came through, I was both excited and pleased to see we had made it to the next round. We were paired up with another girl named Ella, who was competing with her Smoochum.

I headed to the stage again, this time for our battle round.

Ella released her Smoochum in a flurry of hearts, as I released Lexi.

"Smoochy, use sweet kiss, followed by powdered snow," Ella called to her Pokémon.

Smoochum winked at Lexi, before blowing a huge amount of heart shaped kisses at my Pokémon.

She then gave a little twirl, releasing a frozen snow powder after her first attack. The hearts froze with ice, and kept heading towards Lexi.

"Lexi, use quick attack to dodge, followed by charge beam," I told her.

Lexi managed to avoid the frozen hearts, while her body glowed with yellow light.

She released her electric attack, which hit Smoochum dead on.

Smoochum cried out in pain, before hitting back with ice punch.

The attack hit Lexi, but not with enough force to cause much damage.

"Signal beam," I called.

Smoochum dodged the attack and Ella called "Heart stamp,"

"Use quick attack to get out of the way, followed by signal beam again," I cried.

This time our attack hit Smoochum, and it was obvious that the super-effective bug type move had done a lot of damage. I watched as the point's indicator screen dropped on Smoochum's side. But her trainer didn't think they were out of the battle yet.

"Smoochy, use heart stamp again," She called.

"Dodge and use charge," I told Lexi.

Lexi dodged out of the way, her body glowing yellow. Smoochum's moves were coming out a lot more slowly after the signal beam attack.

"Now use charge beam," I told Lexi.

"Dodge Smoochy!" Ella called, but Smoochum was just too slow. The attack hit her dead on, and she fell to the ground, fainted.

"This battle round goes to Annie and Lexi," The announcer said.

"Your Pokémon did really well," I told Ella.

She gave me a small, teary smile "Thanks, so did yours,"

I smiled back at her and headed towards the waiting room, looking forward to our next battle. As we waited, I massaged my head, hoping to relieve some of the pain from my headache.

xOxOx

I had been paired with a monster. The man stared back at me with beady eyes, a huge grin on his face. He wore a sailor's uniform, and his arms were the size of large tree logs. My head throbbed just looking at him.

"Let the battle commence," The announcer called.

I released Lexi, her body sparking all over.

The Sailor released his own Pokémon; a Poliwhirl.

"Water gun," He called.

"Use spark," I told Lexi "And aim it at the water gun,"

Lexi's attack hit the water gun before it had a chance to hit her. It spiraled up the water gun attack, hitting Poliwhirl dead on.

The Pokémon was visibly affected by the move, but it didn't cause it to faint.

"Come on Poliwhirl, use rain dance, followed by double slap," He told his Pokémon.

"Use quick attack to dodge, following by charge beam," I told Lexi.

Lexi narrowly dodged the double slap attack, before hitting back with charge beam. Unfortunately the attack missed.

"Use water pulse," Sailor called.

"Dodge again," I called, but it was too late, and the attack hit Lexi. Fortunately, it didn't look like it caused much damage.

"Finish this off with spark," I told Lexi.

"Dodge and use body slam," Sailor called.

"Wait until the last second and use spark," I cried.

Lexi waiting until Poliwhirl's body barely touched her, before unleashing her spark attack.

Both of the Pokémon flew backwards, but only one of them fainted.

We had made it to the next round.

"Dang it," Sailor cried. He hurried out of the room.

"And the winner of this battle round is Annie and Lexi," The announcer called.

I returned Lexi to her pokeball and hurried off the stage, wondering if she would have enough energy to compete in the next round.

xOxOx

After watching the last battle, it was clear to see that the person I would be up against was good. Really good.

Hannah's Pokémon was a very well trained Clefairy.

She grinned at me from the other side of the stage, you could clearly see how confident she was.

"Let the battle commence," The announcer called.

"Come on out Tinker," Hannah called, releasing her Clefairy.

"Let's go Lexi," I called, releasing Lexi.

Hannah didn't waste any time "Moon blast Tinker,"

"Dodge and use charge beam," I called to Lexi.

The attack scraped Lexi's back, but she managed to avoid the majority of the blow.

Tinker dodged out of the way of the charge beam.

"Use double slap," She told her Pokémon.

"Wait until they're close and use spark," I told Lexi.

Lexi waited until Clefairy's hand was just about to touch her, then followed with a powerful spark attack.

Both of our Pokémon looked exhausted from both this battle and their previous ones.

"Tinker, use meteor mash," Hannah told her Pokémon.

"Use signal beam," I told Lexi.

My attack hit first, causing an explosion. Both of our Pokémon flew backwards.

Clefairy got back to her feet, but Lexi looked beat.

"Are you okay?" I called to her.

"Shi, Shinx," She called back, her feet wobbling as she stood up.

"Can you continue?" I asked her.

She turned back to me and gave a small smile.

That was when her body started to glow white and change. She grew slightly bigger, and longer, and tufts of black fur appeared around her neck.

"Luxio," She called.

"Oh, wow, you evolved," I said, aiming my pokedex at her. She had even learned a new move; Thunder Fang.

"Let's try out thunder fang," I told her.

Her teeth began to spark with electricity as she ran towards Clefairy.

"Dodge and use meteor mash," Hannah told her Pokémon. Clefairy wasn't fast enough and the attack hit dead on. She flew backwards, but still didn't faint.

The buzzer sounded; the battle was over. I looked at the score board to see my points were slightly higher than Hannah's. I had won my first contest.

Lexi skipped happily to me, and I threw my hands around her neck. "We won! And you evolved!"

"Lux, Luxio," She said happily.

Hannah picked up her Clefairy and headed off the stage.

"And this contest's winner is Annie and Lexi," The announcer said. The crowd cheered for us.

After receiving my ribbon, I waved to the crowd and hurried out of there, determined to get back to the Pokémon center. My head had not stopped throbbing throughout the whole contest.

As soon as we stepped into my room, I collapsed to the ground in a ball. I couldn't help but wonder if this pain would ever go away.


	10. Chapter 10 - The City of Flowers

Chapter 10: The City of Flowers

POV: Azure

I could smell the flowers before we had even made it over the hill. It was beautiful.

"I could get used to this," Lucy told me happily. My other Pokémon seemed to be enjoying it too, Lexi and Ari rolled around in a bed of yellow flowers.

"Come on, let's go register," I told my Pokémon. We headed into the town, and made our way to the Pokémon Center. I registered for the contest.

"And do you have any single rooms available?" I asked Nurse Joy.

"Oh, I'm sorry, we're fully booked out thanks to the upcoming contest," She told me "You could try the Rose Inn?"

"Thank you," I replied, heading back out. It looked like I was going to be camping in the woods again.

"I wouldn't mind a night under the stars," Lucy told me, trying to cheer me up. I gave her a grateful smile.

I walked back out of the town, to a clearing surrounded by trees on three sides, and a lake on the other, where I set up my tent.

"I guess we can train here," I told my Pokémon. I started off with battle training, pairing them off and letting them attack on their own, without me shouting out moves to them. I was hoping they would learn to attack and dodge on their own, which would make us quicker at reacting in battles.

After that warm up, I decided it would be Ari who would compete in this contest, since she was yet to compete in one. We were about to start with our usual target practice, when a noise grabbed my attention. It sounded like a group of Pokémon in distress.

I headed towards the sound without hesitation, my Pokémon running alongside me.

As we entered the clearing, I was surprised to see the woman with the silver-grey hair again, along with a group of Shieldon.

"I see you have new Pokémon," Hunter J told me, eying off my Eevee. "I think I'll take them with me, along with these Shieldon,"

"I won't let you," I replied. "Everyone, attack now,"

Hunter J gave me a tight smile "You honestly think your baby Pokémon will be a match for mine?" She snickered "Come on out," she released an Ariados.

"Tie them up," She said simply, and her Ariados aimed a powerful, sticky, string shot at not only my Pokémon, but me. She defeated us instantly. None of us could move.

"You won't get away with this," I told her.

"Make her be quiet, and tie up those Shieldon too," Hunter J told Ariados.

A sticky ball of string shot was tied around my mouth, and the Shieldon were tied up together. My plan hadn't worked at all. I should have thought it through before rushing into the clearing.

"Can we get out of this?" I asked Lucy.

"I'm not sure," She replied.

"I can't move at all," I told her.

"I think that's the point," She replied.

"Load them into the ship," Hunter J told her Pokémon "And let's get out of here,"

As she started to move us, my head once again exploded with a burst of pain. I groaned and rolled over to my side. This pain was really starting to get on my nerves.

Hunter J laughed "You're going with the old 'I'm dying so you have to let me go trick?'" She asked me. "Well, I won't fall for that,"

This time the pain was accompanied by a static voice. _Az... Az… Az… ure_. I felt tears prick my eyes.

"Get them in the ship!" She snapped at her Pokémon.

As I wondered how we would get out this, and if my head would ever feel normal again, a voice called out "Stop right there,"

I opened my eyes a crack to see Killian standing in front of Hunter J.

Hunter J sighed "Not this again," She muttered, releasing her Salamence "Finish them off this time,"

Killian countered by releasing his own Pokémon; a Charmeleon and his Weavile.

Strong hands gripped my mouth ripping off the sticky string shot.

"Are you okay?" Madi asked me, Gemma coming up beside her.

All I could do was groan in pain.

Reuben and Quinton came to stand next to Killian, joining their Pokémon to his.

Hunter J sighed and pulled a phone out of her pocket "Get here now," She said into the phone. She released another Pokémon; a Drapion, to aid her Salamence and Ariados in the battle.

The Mystery Team held their own against her, until a group of men dressed in black came into the clearing.

"We have to get out of here," Madi muttered, reaching into my pocket and pulling out my pokeballs. She returned my Pokémon and called out to Killian "There's too many of them,"

His eyes flicked from her, down to me. "Everyone get out of the way," He said, reaching into his pocket. Madi and Gemma pushed the Shieldon into the bushes, taking off the string shot and telling them to run with us.

I tried to pull myself to my feet, but the pain from my head was just too much, and I fell back down again.

"What's wrong with her?" Killian asked.

"I don't know," Gemma replied.

"On the count of three," He said.

Their Pokémon were starting to tire, as more of Hunter J's henchmen entered the clearing and joined their Pokémon to the battle. Hunter J looked at Killian and scowled, as though she knew what he was about to do. She returned her Pokémon and hurried to her ship.

"One," Killian shouted.

Hunter J's men kept up the battle, not even bothering to look at their leader as she started up the ship and turned on the invisibility.

"Two," Killian shouted.

Although we could no longer see Hunter J's ship, we could hear it, and see the plants around it bend in the breeze it was causing.

"Three," Killian shouted.

On the count of three, they all returned their Pokémon, and Killian dived for me, scooping me into his arms. He threw something over his shoulder, and they all ran in the opposite direction. A huge explosion followed, almost causing Killian to lose his footing. The movement of his body running caused my head to explode with even more pain. I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth.

After a while we finally came to a stop and Killian placed me on the ground. The Shieldon called out a quick thanks, before hurrying off into the bushes. I crawled to another group of bushes, where I started to throw up. If I hadn't been in so much pain, I would have been completely embarrassed.

Madi held my hair while Gemma rubbed my back. I prayed to Arcius she wouldn't feel that it was a wig.

When I had finally stopped retching, Killian snapped at me "What were you doing there? What on earth made you think you could take Hunter J on your own?"

I blinked up at him and answered with a groan.

"Can't you see something's wrong with her?" Madi defended me "We need to take her to the hospital or something,"

"Did J give you something?" He asked me.

"No," I gasped. "I'm fine,"

"You're obviously not fine," He told me "We will take you to the hospital,"

"No," I said again. Lucy released herself from her pokeball, coming to stand in front of me.

"I won't let them take you," She told me.

"This is ridiculous," Killian said, wiping his hand down his face in frustration.

"How about the Pokémon Center? I'm sure you have a room there? You could rest up and maybe get Nurse Joy to check on you?" Gemma suggested.

"No," I replied shakily "They were all booked out,"

"We have a spare bed," Madi piped up, making Killian glare at her.

"Fine, we will go to the Pokémon Center," He muttered. "Can you walk?" He asked me.

I tried to stand, but fell back to the ground. My head throbbed. _Azzzz_.

Killian sighed again. I was surprised he still picked me up gently, cradling me in his arms. "You really should eat more," He muttered in a voice so low I was sure I wasn't supposed to hear it.

We made our way back through the forest and to the Pokémon Center, where Team Mystery took me into a large room, filled with 6 beds. I was placed in one of the corner ones, while they went to get Nurse Joy.

"Shouldn't someone stay with her?" Quinton piped up.

"She shouldn't even be here at all," Reuben replied "She could jeopardize the mission,"

"Shut up, both of you," Madi scolded "This isn't permanent, and we always help friends in need,"

"She isn't our friend," Killian growled at her "She is just some girl that always seems to get in the way,"

I felt my chest clench at that. Just some girl who was always in the way? Ouch.

"Let's just get Nurse Joy to look at her," Gemma mumbled.

They all hurried out of the room, and moments later Nurse Joy returned.

She took my temperature, and shook her head "You have a fever," She told me "Do you hurt anywhere?"

I pointed to my head and muttered "Am I dying?"

She laughed at that "No, no, it just sounds like a migraine,"

I contemplated how much I should tell her, before finally saying "I've been hearing voices, and seeing things,"

Nurse Joy's face showed surprise, before quickly wrinkling in concern "I'm sure they're just hallucinations,"

"But-" I tried.

"I'll go grab you something for the headache," She said, before hurrying out of the room.

Something was wrong, she seemed to know something about this headache that she wasn't letting on. I was going to ask her about it when she came back, but when I took the pills she offered me I fell into an immediate sleep, one that was finally not plagued with strange images.

xOxOx

"Is she awake yet?" One voice asked.

"I'm hungry," Another said.

"We know Quin, you just have to wait,"

I opened my eyes, too see that Team Mystery were back.

"Finally!" Quinton exclaimed "Let's get some food,"

"How are you feeling?" Madi asked me.

Besides from embarrassed? "Fine," I said out loud "Thank you for the… err… bed and stuff,"

"We're going out for dinner, did you want to join us?" Madi asked me.

Remembering what they had said earlier, I decided against it. After all, I wasn't their friend.

"Umm, no, that's fine," I replied. I saw Killian glaring at me and changed my mind "Okay but just for a little while,"

We headed to a restaurant, where they all ordered extravagant meals. I settled with soup to start, some bread, and a marinated tofu &amp; roast vegetable salad for dinner. They all stared at me like I was crazy.

"Is that all you want?" Quinton asked me "Because if you can't afford-"

"Quinton," Madi scolded.

"Oh, no, I'm just not awfully hungry," I replied with a thin smile. If only they knew how much money I _really_ had, even if I couldn't access it.

I watched as their meals came, roasted meats, vegetables, pizzas, pastas all placed in the center of the table for them to share. I wondered how they all stayed skinny if this was the way they ate.

I ate as quickly as I could, determined to get away as fast as possible.

"Don't you ever get lonely travelling alone?" Madi asked me.

Her question took me off guard. Of course I got lonely, I missed Gracie every day.

"I have my Pokémon," I replied, avoiding answering her question.

"What if you have another… episode?" She asked me.

"Well… my Pokémon help me," I replied.

"So this has happened _before_?" She cried.

Crap, crap, crap, I had definitely let that one slip. "Not often," I replied with a wince, which was a lie, since it happened every other day. I looked down at my half-eaten food with a sigh. It was time to go.

"I should get back to my training," I told them, leaving the money for my meal on the table. "Thanks again and I'll… see you all at the contest I guess,"

I quickly hurried out of the room, only to notice I was being followed.

Killian looked at me with his impossibly dark blue eyes. "Are you in trouble?" He asked me.

"N-n-no," I replied. Inside I was screaming _yes_. My mission seemed further away than ever.

He looked at me again for a while before nodding, accepting my response. He then turned and went back into the restaurant.

"We have to be more careful," Lucy told me "We don't know who they are. They seem nice enough, but who knows what they will do if they find out who you are,"

I made my way back to our camp grounds, and started to train with Ari. I needed to take my mind off of Team Mystery and these strange headaches I had been getting.

xOxOx

The contest was finally here. I sat in the waiting room alone, as people started to trickle in. I wasn't surprised to see Willa make her way over to me.

"Hi _Rookie_," She said with a grin "Prepared for another epic fail?"

I looked at her and sighed "I don't have time for this, Willa. Go bug someone else,"

She huffed in annoyance "You should feel privileged to be talking with me,"

"Shoo, shoo, little bug," Another voice said. I looked up to see Madi and Gemma. They sat down on either side of me.

"So how's your head?" Gemma asked.

"Much better," I lied. I had suffered through several more headaches in the days leading up to the contest, and more of the static voice calling out my name. My dreams had been filled with flashing images, though I had managed to memorize some now. Buildings, Hunter J's ship, a large battle between Team Galactic and another group of people. I was exhausted.

"I hope you really prepared for this contest, my Pokémon is so going to win," Madi told me, leaning back in her seat and grinning.

I laughed "I guess we will see,"

The contest followed the usual pattern, with Quinton being called up first. He grinned at Madi and sashayed out of the room.

"So what's going on between you two?" Gemma asked her quietly.

"What's going on with you and Reuben?" Madi countered.

Gemma blushed and mumbled "Absolutely nothing,"

Madi grinned and said "Come on let's watch,"

We looked up at the screen to see Quinton make his way onto the stage. He released his Pokémon; a Growlithe.

He started off his appeal with a fiery, spinning flame wheel, followed up with morning sun.

Growlithe's body glowed at the bottom, with the fiery wheel spinning above his body.

He finished off his performance with an agility and heat wave combination, Growlithe's body glowing as it sent bursts of heat up into the air.

"What a heated performance," Nurse Joy said.

"You definitely lit up the room," Mr. Contesta told Quinton.

"Remarkable," Mr. Sukizo added.

He received a score of 26.1. He hurried off the stage, and eventually it was Madi's turn.

"Let's get this party stared!" She said, hurrying onto the stage.

Madi released her Mudkip, starting her performance with Ancient Power, creating a silvery orb, and releasing it into the sky. She followed this up with mud slap, hitting the silver orb and causing it to explode in silvery lights that fell down around Mudkip. Madi then got her Mudkip to use whirlpool, gathering the silver fragments into the water attack, and finished off with ice beam, encasing the whirlpool in ice. Mudkip landed on top of the whirlpool and bowed.

Their performance had definitely been mesmerizing.

Madi got fairly good compliments for her appeal round, and received a score of 27.3, before heading into the waiting area.

Next up was Gemma. "Good luck for your round," Gemma told me.

"Thanks, you too," I replied.

Gemma appeared on the screen, releasing her Chimchar.

She called out a series of moves to her Pokémon, and they started their appeal round.

Chimchar started off with sunny day, quickly followed by flame wheel, curling up into a ball of flames and rolling around on the stage. Chimchar then followed this up with acrobatics, jumping, flipping and running all over the stage. Her finishing move was a combination of will-o-wisp and fury swipes, creating little balls of fire that Chimchar could then hit with its claws.

Gemma scored 25.8.

Next up out of their group was Reuben. As he made his way to the stage, Killian sat next to me.

Reuben released his Pokémon; an Elekid.

He started off with charge, followed by thunder.

The whole stadium shook with the power of his attack.

Elekid then followed up with a light screen/ thunder wave combination, creating an electrified screen. He then aimed an electro-ball attack at it, smashing the screen into small, shiny, electric pieces.

He received a score of 28.2.

Next up was Killian. He turned to me as though he was going to say something, before deciding not to. He made his way onto the stage.

Killian released his Pokémon; an Aron.

He started off his performance with rock slide, followed by iron head. Aron hit each of the boulders with its shining silver head.

He finished off his performance with rock tomb, encasing Aron in rock, followed by dragon rush. The boulder glowed with blue light as Aron broke his way out, his body glowing with the same blue light.

He received a score of 28.5

Finally it was my turn. I took a deep breath and headed onto the stage.

I released Eevee, starting our performance with wish.

"Now use double team, followed by shadow ball," I told Ari.

There were now six Eevee's standing in a circle. They all sent out shadow ball attacks at the same time, causing them to crash in the middle and cause a cloud of smoke.

Eevee's wish attack now came true, with tiny golden stars appearing amongst the cloudy fog from the explosion. This gave off the appearance of the night sky, with Eevee's body glowing in the center.

As the smoke cloud disappeared, we finished off our performance with swift, picking up all of the tiny glowing stars with the bigger ones.

Eevee bowed while surrounded by a swirling halo of stars.

I received the score of 28.6.

I hurried to the waiting room where Gemma and Madi hurried up to me, escorting me away from Willa.

"That was great!" Gemma told me.

"Yeah, I can't believe you got more than Killian," Willa added with a chuckle.

We looked up at the scoreboard; we had all made it to the next round, and for once I wasn't up against Willa.

I was up against Reuben.


	11. Chapter 11 - Revelations

Chapter 11: Revelations

POV: Azure

Reuben didn't smile at all as he looked back at me. It was becoming clear to me that he really didn't like me.

He released his Elekid, and I released Ariana.

"Elekid, use thunder," Reuben called.

"Dodge and use shadow ball," I told Ari.

Ari narrowly avoided the attack, before countering with shadow ball.

"Dodge and use swift," Reuben told his Pokémon.

"Counter with double team and quick attack," I told Ari. Multiple Eevee's flew around the stage, disappearing as they were hit by the flying stars. "Now use wish,"

"Use electro ball," Reuben told his Pokémon. The electric attack flew towards Ari, who narrowly dodged the attack.

We continued on like this, one of us attacking and the other dodging. I looked at the screen, dismayed to see that we were losing.

"Ari, use shadow ball," I told her.

"Counter with electro ball," Reuben told his Pokémon.

The two attacks collided, sending our Pokémon flying backwards. As Ari hit the ground, her body began to glow. Her wish had come true and she was now getting back some of her health. I looked up at the scoreboard, we were now tied.

"Use charge beam," Reuben told his Pokémon.

"Use quick attack to get out of the way and follow up with shadow ball," I told Ari.

Elekid chased after Ari, but thanks to Ari's speed he could barely keep up, she was running circles around him.

"Stop and use charge, but keep an eye on that Eevee," Reuben told his Pokémon.

"Stop and use shadow ball," I called.

"Now, use thunder," Reuben countered.

Both of the attacks hit head on, once more, causing our Pokémon to fly back again. Ari cried out in pain.

"Can you continue?" I asked her. She gave me a shaky nod. "Okay, use wish,"

"Elekid, use electro ball," Reuben said.

"Dodge it," I called to Ari. She moved quickly, but the attack still grazed her side. Beating Reuben was going to be difficult.

The timer sounded, calling an end to our battle. I looked at the scoreboard; we had lost, but just barely. That meant that even though we couldn't win against anyone from Team Mystery yet, we were getting better.

I scooped Ari up into my arms "You did great," I told her. I was about to congratulate Reuben when I noticed he was gone.

I sighed, wondering if he would ever like me, and made my way out of the concert arena. I had some unfinished business with Nurse Joy I needed to take care of.

xOxOx

As I headed towards the Pokémon centre, a familiar voice took my attention.

"I don't care if you are in a contest, you need to meet me now," The voice said.

After a few more moments he made a strangled noise before yelling "What do you mean you have looked everywhere for her? She can't be nowhere,"

Another moment's pause "Fine, finish the contest, but if you stay a moment later, there will be consequences,"

I peered around the corner, feeling my chest freeze over in fear. Dark blue hair streaked with grey, and cold brown eyes. I had only met him once before, but there was no way I could forget eyes as emotionless as those. Roderick Grey, head of the Illuminators. I wondered who he could be talking to. Was it Willa? Team Mystery? Or someone else entirely.

"I have an idea" Lucy told me.

"What is it?" I asked her, dreading what she would say.

"We should follow him," She replied "Then we will know for sure who he is talking to,"

"Were you reading my thoughts again?" I asked her.

"You project very loudly when you're upset or scared," She replied "We should work on that,"

I thought about what she had suggested, before giving a deep sigh. "Fine," I told her "I'll follow him,"

I peered around the corner once more, just in time to see Roderick Grey heading towards the Pokémon Center. I walked quickly, but at a distance I thought was safe enough for him to not notice me. Instead of going into the Pokémon Centre, he entered the café next to it.

I paused for a few moments before heading in after him, sitting at a table close enough for me to still hear what he said, and far enough away that he couldn't see me. I then ordered a few items from the menu and waited.

xOxOx

I didn't have to wait long before the café doors opened again, and a stream of people came in from the contest. It was finally over.

Team Mystery were amongst them, and my heart clenched as they sat down with Roderick Grey.

Killian looked around before setting his steely eyes onto Roderick and grumbling "Make this quick, we have things to do,"

Roderick glared back "I am beginning to wonder if you lot are being intentionally incompetent. Almost all of the other regions have been completely searched for the girl, with no success. You five have barely searched any of this region,"

"That girl could be anywhere," Killian told him "And we have nothing to go on but the description you have given us for this girl. She could look like anything by now. If you want to point fingers, and pass the blame, start looking at yourself first. After all, you were the one who let her get away in the first place,"

"I would hold your tongue if I were you boy," Roderick sneered "Just because you all have family high up in the company, that won't save you from your back talking and incompetence,"

I watched Madi bristle as he said that "We're doing all we can to better ourselves and find the girl, what are you doing?" She asked him.

"Hold your tongue," Roderick snapped at her, before placing a red card on the table.

"We've been carded?" Quinton gulped.

"It has been proven that you lot are not doing your job properly. This whole region should have been searched by now. We have sent in another team to get it done for you," Roderick told them with a smirk.

"So we have been taken off the case?" Killian said angrily.

"Pushed to the side, more like it," Roderick replied, clasping his hands together "You can continue 'growing your abilities'," He told them, making quotation marks with his fingers "And this team will get the job done properly,"

Killian's jaw set in anger "Who is it,"

Roderick smiled "That's classified. I'm sure you will see them soon,"

He then stood up, chucking a few bills on the table. "I have to go now, some of us have important things to do," He exited the building, leaving Team Mystery looking after him with mixed expressions of anger, hurt and surprise.

"Can he do this?" Gemma asked.

"Of course he can," Reuben said, slamming his fist onto the table "He is much higher up than we are, his influence in The Illuminators is much more than ours,"

"Could your father-" Willa started, but Killian cut her off.

"I refuse to speak with him," He spat "Don't ask me again," He then stood up and left.

"We need to stop dealing with people who are not part of the mission," Reuben told them rest of them "We need to focus!"

"Are you talking about Annie?" Madi asked him.

"I'm talking about anyone and everyone outside of the five of us," He told her "Do you want to be carded again?"

"Reu-" Gemma started, touching his arm.

He shrugged her off "The Illuminators is my life," He told her "If we're kicked out, the three of you will be fine. But Killian and I have a lot riding on this mission. We can't fail. We must find the girl," He then hurried out of the restaurant after Killian.

"This is not good," Gemma sighed, rubbing a hand over her face.

"I know," Madi replied.

"While we're here, do you want to grab a bite?" Quinton asked "All this talk of the mission is making me hungry,"

"This is so not the time, Quinton," Madi snapped at him.

"No he's right, let's get some food, and let Reuben and Killian cool off. We'll regroup later," Gemma told Madi.

"Fine," She replied "But it's time we focus more on our mission, and less on having fun,"

The other two nodded in agreement.

I quickly placed some bills on my table before sneaking out, determined to get to Eterna City ahead of The Illuminators. My chest felt tight, thinking about how close I had been to them all this time, how we had shared meals and battled next to each other. I had to be more careful, or everything I was working towards would be for nothing.

xOxOx

1 week later

I gritted my teeth against the pain, feeling like my head was exploding. Images flashes against the back of my eyelids, too fast to comprehend any of them.

"Just breath," Lucy told me in a panicked voice.

I crawled over to the bushes, throwing up the contents of my stomach.

Then the pictures started to slow down, something that had only been happening for the last few days.

The static voice came through much clearer.

"Azure," The voice said "….Hear….. me?"

There were still words I couldn't hear through the static, but it was still better than it had been the week before.

"Yes," I gasped.

I saw an image of a tall mountain, the tip crusted with ice and snow. The image zoomed in to the bottom, where the cave walls moved apart, revealing an entrance to a secret base. The walls and floors were lined with metal sheeting and lights, which lead into a room filled with computer equipment and people dressed in The Illuminators uniform. Roderick Grey stood in front of them, barking orders, and pointing at a picture of Team Mystery. Something was wrong, but I couldn't hear what he was saying.

"…. Trust," The voice said in my mind before cutting off, making my headache lessen to a more bearable state.

My gut feeling told me that there was no way I could trust Roderick Grey, so what did this voice mean? And who did it belong to?

"I'm sure we will find out soon enough," Lucy told me "It's getting better each day," she patted my back in sympathy.

"I can only hope so," I told her, standing on shaky legs "For now we have to keep training," Eterna City was not only the destination of my next Pokémon contest, but the next gym battle too.

I released my Pokémon from their pokeballs, determined to get as much training in as possible in the darkness of the night. We had combinations to come up with, as well as gym moves. I couldn't worry about a bunch of pictures that I knew nothing about.

"Who will you be using in the contest this time?" Lucy asked me with dread.

"Antario," I replied with a smirk.

"Antario is a great choice," Lucy told me enthusiastically, very happy to not be chosen herself.

"I had a feeling you would feel that way," I told her with a smile, before starting my training.

xOxOx

I was surprised to see that The Illuminators were not at this contest, but Willa was.

"No Dream Team here to keep me away from you," She told me with a smirk, flattening her hands over her pink taffeta outfit. Her blonde hair was perfectly curled, and her brown eyes shone with glee.

"When it comes to you, I don't need them," I told her.

She huffed in annoyance "I am a much better contest star than you," She told me "In fact, I am superior to you on many levels,"

I sighed, dealing with Willa was not what I wanted to do. "Maybe you should focus more on the contest and less on me," I told her.

"I will see you later," She snapped at me "It will be fun, even if you're not much of a challenge,"

She turned around and hurried away from me, her skirts swaying around her.

I waited in the corner of the room, and noticed that Willa was now talking with a guy I had never seen before. They were talking in hushed tones, and Willa did not look happy. The guy had dark red hair, and bright green eyes. He was tall and slender, with a muscular build. The strangest part about him, was that he wore a long cape. One of the contest staff members made their way towards him, saying loudly "You are not a member of this contest, so please leave the room,"

He turned his gaze towards her, green eyes narrowed, before looking back at Willa. "Find me later," He told her. Before he left his eyes met mine, and his lips twitched up in a smirk. Who was this guy? And why did he have Willa all riled up?

xOxOx

I released Antario from his pokeball. The ball capsule I had placed on his pokeball came into effect, releasing a bunch of yellow stars. He started off exactly as I had planned, by burrowing underground. Holes started to appear above the ground around the stage, before Antario released a big sand attack. Sand flew from all of the holes, covering the arena. We then used a combination move of earth power and quick attack, appearing as a glowing form flying through the sand. When the sand dissipated Antario's body still glowed yellow from the earth power attack. He finished off by spinning and using mudslap to fill in the holes he had created in the ground, before giving the audience a bow. It was a move that had taken us a while to perfect, since the spinning move kept making Antario dizzy.

"A lovely performance," Nurse Joy said, giving us a score of 8.

"Your Pokémon performed wonderfully," Mr. Contesta added with a smile, giving us a score of 8 as well.

Mr Sukizo finished off by telling me that my Pokémon must have a great deal of patience and stamina to have learnt such a move, also giving us a score of 8.

We hurried back into the waiting room. Willa stood in the corner with her arms crossed and her jaw clenched. I had never seen her look this way before, even when Team Mystery harassed her. I couldn't help but wonder who that boy was, and how Willa fitted into everything as well.

She didn't unclench her jaw until she was called out for her performance. Surprisingly, her performance went terribly. Her Marill was slow with its moves, which wasn't the Marill's fault. Willa wasn't her usual self, calling out attacks at the wrong time and confusing her Marill. As a result, she scored poorly.

She returned her Marill, a steely look in her eyes, and exited the contest hall.

I contemplated following her, but thought against it. Willa has never acted friendly towards me, and she probably wouldn't start now.

I waited until the second round, seeing that I was paired up with a chubby, greasy haired boy, who looked about the same age as I did, named Mason. His Pokémon was a Whismur.

Mason started off, using screech.

"Dig," I called out, sending Antario underground "Followed by sand attack,"

The arena filled with sand. Luckily, this had no effect on Trapinch, but Whismur would be unable to see through the sand.

"Whismur, use pound," Mason called.

"Dodge and use mud-slap," I told Antario.

Our attack hit head-on, greatly wounding the Whismur.

"Now use earth power," I instructed.

Antario's body glowed through the sand attack as he slammed against the floor with incredible power. Cracks appeared, heading straight for Whismur, who fainted on impact.

I was surprised this battle had been so easy. Antario had to have been much stronger than Mason's Whismur.

"Return Whismur," Mason sighed. He then came over to me and shook my hand "That was our first contest," He told me "I'm pretty stoked we made it to the second round,"

I smiled back and politely said "You did very well for your first go,"

"Well I better head off to the next town, see ya," He said, before exiting the hall.

I hurried back into the waiting room, ready for my next battle. I watched the other battle on screen, trying to see any weak points from both competitors that would hopefully help me in the final round. The battle was between two girls, one with fiery red hair and a Ninetails, the other a petite brunette with a Jumpluff. The battle went for much longer than my own had, with the Jumpluff coming out the victor.

This wouldn't go so well for me, as a bug type Jumpluff would have resistance over Antario's ground type moves.

"And we will now proceed to the final round," Marian called "Annie with Trapinch competing against Marlia and her Jumpluff,"

I made my way to the stadium standing on one side, Marlia on the other.

We released our Pokémon at the same time, yellow stars and pink flowers covering the room.

Marlia wasted no time "Jumpluff use tackle,"

"Dodge it with dig," I countered. Antario narrowly avoided Jumpluff's attack by burrowing underground.

"Follow and use fairy wind," Marlia called.

Jumpluff flew down the hole Antario had created, using a gust of pink wind to blow him out of the other end and into the air. He slammed into the ground with a thud.

"We have him where we want him! Use mega drain," Marlia instructed.

The move was super affective, since Antario was a ground type. My points dropped dramatically. I would need a miracle to turn this battle around.

"Antario use quick attack followed by bite," I called.

Antario sped up flying towards Jumpluff, and bit down hard on one of its cotton puffs.

Jumpluff cried out in pain.

"It's okay Jumpluff, shake it off with cotton spore!" Marlia commanded.

Antario's body was covered in fluffy balls of cotton.

"Shake it off and use earth power," I called.

Antario shook his little body, but the spores remained attached to him. I wasn't sure what to do, this wasn't something we had been through before, or seen. There wasn't much time left on the screen.

"Use mega drain!" Marlia instructed her Jumpluff.

Jumpluff attacked again, using the super affective mega drain.

"Come on Antario, you can do this! I believe in you!" I called.

Antario looked back at me, a look of determination in his eyes. His body began to glow white. All I could think was that it didn't look like earth power.

Antario's body changed and grew, before he was no longer a Trapinch.

"Vibrava!" He called.

He flew up into the air, shaking off the cotton spores, before turning back to the Jumpluff.

I pulled out my pokedex, checking out Vibrava's moves. They were the same as before except he now had one new move; dragon breath.

"Use dragon breath!" I called to him.

A purple beam flew from his mouth towards Jumpluff, hitting it dead on. But it didn't faint. I watched as Marlia's points fell, becoming equal to my own.

Jumpluff flew up to Antario "Use solar beam," Marlia called.

Counter with dragon breath," I told Antario.

The two beams met in the middle, causing an explosion to erupt. The arena was flooded with smoke.

"Antario?" I called. There was no way either pokemon could have survived that explosion, which would mean this would have ended in a draw.

As the smoke faded I was surprised to see Antario zipping around in the air, while Jumpluff lay on the ground, fainted. Somehow, I had won.

"As Jumpluff is unable to go on, the winner is Annie!" Marian called.

I walked up to her, accepting my ribbon. Antario landed on my shoulder, smiling happily.

I looked back at Marlia, about to tell her how amazing her Jumpluff was, but she was nowhere in sight. I sighed, wondering if I was a walking human repellent. While making friends wasn't part of my mission, and would probably slow me down, I couldn't help but feel completely alone.

"You have me, and all of your Pokémon," Lucy told me telepathically, a sad tinge to her voice.

"And for that I am grateful," I told her back "Now let's go train for our gym battle,"

"How about we get some food first?" She suggested.

"Okay, but then we will go back to training," I promised.

xOxOx

We had a quick meal before starting our training again. We hadn't been training for long before we were interrupted by a shrieking scream.

Lucy turned towards me "Should we go check it out?" She asked.

"Well, I have been told I always seem to be at the center of trouble," I replied with a grin.


End file.
